


The Sound of Your Silence

by MechanicalTrash



Category: One Piece
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Christmas, Christmas Party, College, M/M, Mute - Freeform, Mute AU, Muteness, New Year's Eve, Slow Burn, mute law, probably cursing cuz eustass kid
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-11-18
Updated: 2020-01-08
Packaged: 2021-02-12 20:04:01
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 12
Words: 23,535
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21482068
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MechanicalTrash/pseuds/MechanicalTrash
Summary: The raven didn’t know what to do. It wasn’t like he didn’t want to apologize. He just couldn’t. Even though you could reason it wasn’t even his fault to begin with, but an apology would be in order here.Law’s silence seemed to piss off the redhead even more. “Speak, you bastard!” he exclaimed, grabbing the slightly shorter male by the collar. He was about ready to punch his damn face.In came Law’s savior. A guy with long blond hair and his face almost entirely wrapped in a scarf put his hand on Red’s shoulder. “Kid… Let him go. You know you’ll get banned from  the library if you start another fight here.”
Relationships: Eustass Kid/Trafalgar D. Water Law
Comments: 32
Kudos: 188





	1. Speak, you bastard!

**Author's Note:**

> First time writing this pairing.  
Hope they're not too out of character.  
English is not my first language.  
Comments and feedback are always more than welcome!

Law shivered one last time as he entered the building, letting the warmth engulf him entirely. Winter had never been his favorite season, after all. Although, he had to admit, it was the one timeof the year people didn’t look at him weirdly for wearing his fuzzy spotted hat.

The slender male closed the door behind him and rubbed his hands together in an attempt to warm them up. After a few more seconds of letting his body heat up just a bit more, he started moving. The library was busy, which wasn’t much of a surprise considering how close the exams were getting. Besides, it was much warmer inside than outside, so many students would meet up here, instead of their usual meeting spots.

Law scanned the place for an empty table, and was lucky to spot one a bit further in the back. He started towards the table and set down his backpack before sitting down. He set up his laptop and laid out his books. Time to put all this information into his brain.

Trafalgar Law was a Medical student. He had ambitions to become a surgeon, and was actually doing great in his studies so far. He was an intelligent guy after all. That didn’t mean he didn’t need to work hard though. He had suffered through his fair share of sleepless nights to get his papers and lab preparations done.

Over the past few months, the male had learned that the library was the best place to study. Of course, when it was as busy there as it was today, it wasn’t so quiet. Usually though, the place was rather peaceful, and he got motivated by seeing other students study as well. The same could not be said for Law’s rowdy roommate. The surgeon-to-be could never concentrate when Luffy was in the room.  
Not to be mistaken, he actually took a bit of a liking to Luffy, but the boy was entirely too energetic for Law to deal with 24/7. Thus, the library had become the raven haired boy’s refuge.

Law took out his headphones and put them on, over his hat that he had refused to take off, even though he knew the librarian would be pissed if she saw him with it. He didn’t plug them into his laptop, they were not to listen to music. It was merely to drown out the other students as well as to signal to everyone else to leave him alone and not talk to him.

For a few hours, the studying went rather smooth. He progressed as much as he wanted too, which was definitely a positive. It wouldn’t be the first time he underestimated the time he would need to spend on certain chapters.  
He had come to the point where he was in desperate need for a bit of movement. He got up, closed his laptop and turned to Nami, who was sitting a table away from him. He knew her solely because she was a friend of his roommate. He walked over to her and tapped her on her shoulder. The ginger haired girl looked up with annoyance written on her face. That faded a bit when she saw Law.

Law pointed at his stuff at the other table and then to the door. Nami understood that he was asking for her to look after his belongings while he went outside for a bit and gave him a thumbs up. The male gave her a grateful nod and started towards the door while pulling up the zipper of his coat.

Law took a walk to the small coffee shop on campus. Another one of Luffy’s friends worked there. Sanji, was the name, Law believed. He was a nice enough guy. Had weird, curly eyebrows though. Zoro worked there too sometimes, and Law made sure to avoid the coffee shop when both Curly Brow and Moss Head had the same shift. The two did nothing but insult each other and bicker.

Sanji took notice of the raven entering the shop and greeted him before tending to some girls who were at his register. Law stood patiently in line. He was in no hurry, it was a good break from studying after all.

When it was his turn, Sanji greeted him again. “The usual?” the blond asked. Law nodded. Sanji got started on the beverage and handed it to Law, who paid him in return. “Try to keep it limited to one, yeah? You need to start getting some actual sleep instead of living on coffee and energy drinks alone. It ain’t healthy.”

Law grinned at the male. Like he didn’t know how unhealthy it was. He was a Medical student for god’s sake. It’s just that Law was bad at the whole ‘practice what you preach’ kind of thing. He raised his hand to Sanji as a way of saying thank you and started to head back to the library.

Even though the walk was short, Law welcomed the warmth of the library back with open arms. Boy, did he loathe the winter. He went back to his seat and this time Nami got up for a stretch. Of course, he agreed to look after her stuff as well. A favor for a favor.

Now re-energized thanks to the bitter black drink, he went back to work. The studying progressed further rather well, until he got stuck. And God knows nobody could tell Law to chill or relax when he got stuck.

The raven went through all his books and course material to find an explanation, but didn’t find wha the was looking for. Slightly frustrated, he got up from his seat and walked through the many rows of books. There was bound to be an explanation between all these manuscripts somewhere.

He took a few books regarding the subject and headed back to his table. On his way, a group of students passed him by and rudely shoved him out of the way, causing him to stumble back a little. Due to the push, the table he got knocked into shook a little and the glass of water that had been standing on it fell and spilled all over the table and the notes of the poor student that had been sitting there.

“What the hell?!” a loud, intimidating voice exclaimed. Law rotated his body to look at the source of the voice and saw a rather muscular boy. Yes, he could tell even though the boy was wearing a sweater. He had fiery red hair, being pushed out of his face with a black bandana. Quite frankly, the boy looked quite intimidating. Black lipstick and nail polish and all.

The boy got up, glaring at Law. He looked absolutely furious. Not that Law could blame him. He would be about ready to beat up anyone that would ruin his notes like that, and he was anything but the confrontational type.

Law held up his hands, as to show he didn’t want a fight. This somehow seemed to piss off the guy even more. “Not even an apology?! Are you kidding me?! Do you have any idea how important those notes were?!”

The raven didn’t know what to do. It wasn’t like he didn’t want to apologize. He just couldn’t. Even though you could reason it wasn’t even his fault to begin with, but an apology would be in order here.

Law’s silence seemed to piss off the redhead even more. “Speak, you bastard!” he exclaimed, grabbing the slightly shorter male by the collar. He was about ready to punch his damn face.

In came Law’s savior. A guy with long blond hair and his face almost entirely wrapped in a scarf put his hand on Red’s shoulder. “Kid… Let him go. You know you’ll get banned from the library if you start another fight here.”

The guy, Kid he was apparently named, let go of Law, a scowl very much present on his face. His anger hadn’t dwindled even a little.

“I’ll let you borrow my notes.” the savior said.

Kid threw one last glare at Law before going with his friend to clean up the mess the water had made and get back to studying.

Law let out a deep breath, being happy to have escaped the wrath of the redhead. He went back to his own seat, slightly shaken up by the experience.

Nami gave him a sympathetic smile. “Not exactly the right guy to be picking a fight with, Law… I’d watch out of if I were you. He has a bit of a delinquent reputation.”  
Just Law’s luck. He seemed to have unintentionally picked a fight with the devil.


	2. Kid's Regret

After the encounter at the library the previous day, Law was less than eager to go back there. He wasn’t necessarily scared of facing Kid again, as scary as the other male may look. It was just that the really didn’t like confrontation, and even though the redhead surely wouldn’t start a fight in the library, the rest of the campus didn’t have that protection.

If the stories he had heard about the boy were anything to go by, Kid would certainly had not forgotten what had happened. He was seemingly notorious for holding a grudge, even over the smallest things. Law assumed he had some anger issues.

So, what was our brilliant Medical student’s solution to this predicament? Trying to study in his dorm of course!

Currently, the boy was seated at his personal desk, which was covered with books and notes. He had to admit it felt weird to be sitting there to study, since he had made such a habit of doing as much studying in the library as he could. Unfortunately, he soon enough got reminded once again as to why that was.

Luffy was in the room as well, which, of course, was his fullest right since this room was just as much his as it was Law’s. The downside was, though, that Luffy didn’t care exams were drawing near. Oh no, for him this was the ideal time to be playing some games.

Law’s roommate yelling loudly into his headset while playing some kind of shooter game on his PlayStation. The other players were most likely his adoptive brothers. None of these guys seemed to ever have to study or something.

The raven had hoped he could block out all the noise by putting on his trusty headphones, but even when he actually put music on he could clearly hear his roommate’s shouts.

After an hour, the male had no choice but to give up. This room would just never be a place where he could study while his roommate was present or awake (and even then you could argue that Luffy’s snoring was enough interruption).

Law got up and packed his backpack. Luffy looked up at his roommate, the sudden movement having caught his attention. “Where are you going, Torao?” he asked, his eyes not leaving the screen, not about to lose from his brothers.

The older male shrugged and pointed at the door. He would be more specific if Luffy could understand sign language. The younger boy had tried though. When he first became Law’s roommate, he had been really determined to learn sign language so he could understand what he was saying. After a few tutoring sessions though, Luffy gave up. He simply hadn’t the attention span to learn it. Law still appreciated the effort though.

Usually, when something really had to be said, Law would just write a note to his roommate, or send a text. It depended on what he felt like. It never seemed to bother Luffy to have a mute roommate either, so living together was rather easy, safe for the noise.

Law left the dorms and entered the icy winter air. He instinctively buried his face more in his scarf as he walked towards the coffee shop. Since the library still didn’t seem like the greatest idea, he thought that he could give this a try.

This time, it was Zoro working, for which Law was rather grateful. At least the green haired boy knew his order, else he would have to try and awkwardly explain what he wanted. Not everyone could handle communicating with a mute very well.

Once he got his beverage, he took a seat at one of the empty tables and got out his books. This seemed to actually be a good idea. The place was slightly noisy because of all the costumers it gets, but it was nothing that would be disturbing the studying. In fact, there were a few other students that seemed to have the same idea as the mute.

For two hours, Law managed to work in peace. It was quiet enough and he could concentrate well. The fact he could easily get another coffee was certainly a plus as well. He was addicted to his caffeine after all. He even considered making this his new study spot.

Sadly for Law, that idea would soon be destroyed. It started when Sanji walked in to start working his shift, which unfortunately overlapped somewhat with Zoro’s.

It didn’t take much time for the two to start their usual bickering. It also didn’t take long for their bickering to turn into a full out shouting match.

Once again, Law’s peaceful studying was interrupted. The boy couldn’t help but sigh slightly frustrated. He might have no choice but to go back to the library after all. With another back sigh, he got up, gathering his stuff, waving to Sanji and Zoro, and headed to the library.

Luckily for Law, the troublesome redhead didn’t seem to be present in the library. For the third time that day, he sat down at a table and set up his study material.

-

Kid was glaring at the paper in front of him. It was all in his handwriting, so why was it that he didn’t understand a single thing that was on that paper. He wrote it all down in class. He was present in class when the material was explained. So. Why. Didn’t. He. Understand?!

It didn’t help that the notes that got destroyed the previous day were also part of this chapter, which made it all make even less sense. Sure, he was allowed to use Killer’s notes, but the two of them had such a different way of taking notes and he just didn’t understand the way Killer tried to explain stuff to himself.

Thinking about his lost notes made the redhead angry all over again. The ass that knocked his water over hadn’t even had the decency to apologize! Accidents happen, Kid knows that, but the LEAST you can do is apologize for the inconvenience you caused.

Kid shook his head. He had to concentrate, damn it, not think about annoying, slender yet somewhat good looking raven haired pests. Back to studying. If he ever wanted to get his engineering degree he better get what these notes are talking about.

After a little more of trying to decipher Killer’s notes, he decided he was going to need help of the man himself. He picked up his phone and dialed his friend’s number.

“Killer speaking.” the blond said while answering his phone.

“Yo, Killer. It’s Kid. You got some time for me? I really don’t understand jack shit from your notes.”

Killer chuckled. He had somewhat expected that already. His notes were a mystery to most people. How he himself managed to understand them was one of the biggest mysteries the world has ever known.

“Okay, I’ll meet you in the library in about an hour? I need to eat something first.”

“Fine, see you then.” Kid ended the call and decided to move on to another course for a while. After all, he wasn’t about to waste a full hour on doing nothing. Despite what most people would think, Kid did actually study quite well, and a lot too. He was really driven to get his degree. Not that he would ever admit to that though.

After going through some other course material, it was time to head to library to meet up with Killer. Kid, the absolute mad lad that he is, went out in the cold winter air with no jacket, only having his hoodie to shield him from the cold. This guy just didn’t feel any cold, or could hide it very well if it did bother him.

Killer was already waiting for him at the entrance of the old, big building. The two greeted each other and entered together, quickly picking a table to sit.

“So… tell me where you’re stuck.” Killer said, but he didn’t get a reply from his friend. The other was too busy glaring at another student. Following his gaze, it soon turned out to be the raven from the day before.

“Kid, stop glaring at that guy. Let it go.” Killer said.

“I can’t let it go, Killer. He still hasn’t apologized.” Kid replied.

Killer was actually speechless. Did Kid really not realize? Well, maybe not everyone on campus knew exactly about Law’s condition, but Killer had always deemed it quite obvious if you noticed how the slender boy communicated with others.

“You don’t realize it do you?”

Kid’s head snapped to Killer. What was that supposed to mean?

“The guy’s mute. If he wanted to apologize he would need to use sign language to do so, and as far as I am aware you don’t understand a word of sign language. “ Killer pointed out.

The redhead didn’t know how to react to that. Now that his friend pointed it out, it seemed so obvious. Of course the guy was mute. The way he interacted with that ginger haired girl that he knew hung out with that loud-mouth Luffy often.

The raven would always point at places the would go. Kid had just always assumed that the other boy was just rude or something. Why did his dumbass not realize that it was just because he wasn’t capable of speaking?!

To be completely honest, Kid felt kind of bad for the way he reacted yesterday. Sure, it really sucked he lost his notes, but it wasn’t the male’s fault he got pushed into his table. The fact that he just could bring an apology into words wasn’t his fault either. Kid just _had_ to go ahead and tell him to speak, out of all things. Because people needed another reason to think of him as an inconsiderate asshole.

“You really didn’t know?!”

Kid sighed. “Look, now that you pointed it out to me I feel kind of stupid, but no, I didn’t realize he was mute.” he admitted. Was that some form of regret Killer could gear in his friend’s voice? Was _Eustass Kid_ feeling _remorse_ about something he did? Hell must have frozen over.

“Don’t look at me like that, Killer. Even I can realize it when I _unnecessarily_ act like a prick.” Kid said, slightly annoyed.

“Now, decipher these notes for me.” he said, deciding it would be better to change the subject. He didn’t want to talk about this any further. However, he did make a mental note to apologize to the raven later, would the opportunity arise.


	3. Kid's Apology

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Kid found a way to apologize...

The days following, Kid kept an eye on the mute boy. What he did every day, the things he liked, Kid picked up on it all. Sure, that may sound kind of creepy and make him seem like a stalker, but he wasn’t. He promised.

The reason as to why the redhead did this, was because he was trying to find a way and a moment to apologize. It seemed to be harder than he thought. He knew virtually nothing about the raven. Heck, he didn’t even know if the boy expected an apology. Still, Kid felt like he had to give one.

After his ‘observation’, he finally thought of a way to apologize. It wasn’t hard to notice that the mute drank a lot of coffee. A LOT. Kid had no idea how he took his coffee, but based on what he saw, Zoro and Sanji knew his order. That kind of made sense too, could you imagine the drama of having to communicate what beverage you wanted every single time.

So, with his apology in mind, he entered the coffee shop and went to the register. Lucky for Kid, it was Zoro working at the moment. He was sure if he had to admit to Sanji that he was going to get the guy a drink as an apology, he would never hear the end of it. Zoro, however, was less likely to make a big deal out of it.

“Ah, Kid. The usual?” Zoro asked. The redhead never said he was any better than the raven when it came to his coffee consumption.

Kid shook his head. He thought about how to phrase his next sentence without seeming like a total weirdo. “Uhm, you know the mute guy, right?”

Zoro blinked. “You mean Law?”

Ah, so that was his name, huh? Good to know. Kid just nodded as a reply, not even sure if it was right. But what were the odds the green haired boy in front of him knew another mute guy that drank a lot of coffee on this campus.

“Could you get me what he drinks? I kind of owe him an apology…” Kid finally admitted.

Zoro blinked at that. Kid? Apologizing? Did hell freeze over? The mosshead noticed the annoyed expression on Kid’s face when he didn’t reply and just stared at him with a confused expression. Roronoa made the call that it was a bad idea to press Kid on the matter and just got started on the drink.

Kid paid and left the coffee shop and headed to the library. He felt kind of bothered. He wasn’t sure why he was so nervous about apologizing. It’s not like he never apologized before. He truly wasn’t as cruel as people thought.

-

Law had been studying in peace. This whole day was going so well. He had moved through is study material at a decent pace, taking the information in very well. It seemed like it was a good day for studying.

Then, of course, he had to be pulled out of the zone. Don’t get him wrong, he loved his friends very much, but they had the worst timing ever. At his table he was now joined by Penguin and Shachi. The two were also students in the Medical field and were in some lectures with him.

_“How is studying going?”_ Penguin signed at him. This was one of the big advantages to these two. They had been friends even before college and had taken the time to learn sign language when they were younger and first befriended the mute.

_“It was going well until you two interrupted me.”_ Law signed back, a playful grin on his face. Penguin rolled his eyes and Shachi stuck his tongue out at his friend, being the mature person he was.

Then Shachi noticed the infamous redhead enter the library and he tapped Law, making the boy’s attention shift to him._ “Is he still mad at you?”_ he signed before pointing at the door.

Law looked over and saw Kid. He turned back around and shrugged. He honestly had no clue. He assumed the redhead was still mad at him, for his own safety, and stayed out of his way at any case.

Penguin paled when he noticed the redhead’s eyes land on their table and then slowly starting to make his way over. “Uh-oh.” he said under his breath. Law sighed, knowing that couldn’t mean anything good.

Kid soon reached the table where the trio was sitting, all eyes on him of course. Nami had noticed as well and had gotten up from her seat and walked over to the table. “Leave him alone Kid. It was just a spilt drink, and it wasn’t even his fault. No need to beat him up!” she scolded.

The boy sighed and rolled with his eyes. Seriously, did he seem like that much of a bad guy? Maybe he preferred to not have that question answered.

“I am not here to beat him up, so you can get that stick out of your ass and sit back down.” he growled at her. Possibly, this was one of the reasons his reputation was the way it was.

Kid decided to further ignore Nami and the two idiots that were sitting with Law, and put the still hot beverage on the table. “I… I wanted to apologize for the way I snapped at you. I didn’t realize you were… well… mute.”

Law was surprised by the gesture and, much like Zoro in the coffee shop, looked at him with a confused expression. The lack of reaction one again irked the redhead, but he kept telling himself that the raven was mute and couldn’t exactly say anything.

Kid decided to walk away, since he wasn’t about to keep standing there awkwardly while everyone was looking at him as if he was an otherworldly creature or something.

Law signed to Penguin to stop him, the boy in question hesitantly getting up and tapping Kid on the shoulder. “Hold up a second.” he said.

The muscular man turned around again and watched Law sign something to the boy that had just stopped him. Penguin took his time to read what Law was telling him and then translated for the redhead to understand. “He says thank you. And he also says you could have just normally apologized to him, since it was clear you didn’t know.”

Kid just nodded and left the library, feeling quite awkward about the whole situation. Penguin went back to his seat. “What the hell was that about?” he said.

Law shrugged and signed _“No idea… It’s nice of him to apologize though…”_ The trio then decided to get back to studying, Penguin and Shachi staying to be able to ask Law for help with stuff they got stuck on.

-

Killer looked up from his desk as he saw his fiery haired roommate enter. He frowned when he saw Kid’s expression. He looked as if he was in deep thoughts, and the thoughts didn’t seem to be pleasant.

“You okay there, dude?” the blond asked. The other didn’t even reply, so stuck in his own thoughts to even hear what his roommate was saying. Now Killer was worried.

He sent a quick text to Heat and Wire to ask if they had any idea as to why Kid was asking he way he was. If anyone besides him knew, it would be them. After all, the three of them were the only ones who could see past Kid’s aggressive nature. It’s sad to say that they were the only friends the redhead had.

The other two replied rather fast, both admitting they had no idea what was going on. Killer sighed and got up to from his seat and walked over to his roommate, who was now staring at the wall with a blank expression.

He shook Kid lightly, finally drawing the male out of his thoughts. “Oh, hi Killer… when did you get here?” he asked, clearly surprised to see his friend. Killer nearly facepalmed at that.

“I’ve been here the whole time… are you okay? You seemed a bit out of it.” Killer asked

“I’m fine, Killer. I was just thinking…” the redhead’s thoughts seemed to be drifting again, before he shook his head as to shake away the thoughts, and then walked over to his desk to study.

The blond decided to no longer press as to what was going on in the mess of a head that was his friend’s and went back to studying as well. After all, no matter what was going on with Kid, the exams weren’t about to take that in account.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you're liking the story so far!  
Feel free to tell me your thoughts in the commments!


	4. Killer's realization

Killer’s concern was growing as he observed the change in his best friend’s behavior. Said friend had seemed to be living on a different planet most of the time. Sure, the boy still studied well, as he always did, but whenever they were relaxing or hanging out or eating or something, Kid wasn’t there mentally.

The blond still had no clue what caused the sudden change, and he got more curious about it every day. What on earth could be so interesting that it had that much of an impact on Kid’s mind.

The drop came when Kid was burning their dinner for the night because he had been too busy staring in front of him, lost in thoughts. Once Killer had saved their food, he turned to the redhead to finally get some clarity on the situation.

“Okay, enough. What the hell is going on with you?”

Kid looked at his friend in confusion, making the latter roll with his eyes.

“I swear to god, I will throw you out of the window if you tell me you have no idea what I am talking about. You know damn well that you’ve been acting strange and you are going to tell me why.” Killer was just so done with the behavior.

-

Kid left the room. He had no idea how to explain to Killer that the reason he was so absent minded was because he had a boy on his mind. Yes. He had someone on his mind. A boy no less. You better believe he was surprised by the revelation as well.

Of course, the redhead didn’t admit any of this to Killer. Sure, he was his best friend and he would trust him with his life, but he just didn’t feel like it was anyone’s business. Instead, he used the excuse of feeling a bit under the weather and being stressed out for the upcoming exams.

Kid was pretty sure the blond didn’t believe a word he said. After all, it was a pretty lame excuse. However, his friend had been nice enough to not point it out and leave it be. For now at least.

His feet automatically took him to the library. He had been coming here way more often than he used to. Had a certain raven-haired male something to do with this? God only knows.

Luckily, he had been smart enough to bring his books, so he took a spot and sat down to study. He still was planning on passing all his exams, occupied mind or not.

-

Law entered the library, followed by Penguin and Shachi. After helping them the last time, they decided they would study with Law more often. This had a lot of benefits for the two of them. For Law, not so much.

Usually, he would tell them to leave, but he noticed it was helpful for himself to tell how well he knew the material by how well he could explain it to them.

The mute male was surprised to see a by now familiar head of red hair. He used to keep an eye out for that same red to make sure he wouldn’t get murdered. Now, he just can’t tell by how weird the apology had been. Not that he was mad about it though.

The only thing that bugged him about the whole thing was that he was afraid Kid was just feeling sorry for him. The last thing Law needed was pity. Then again, Kid didn’t seem like someone who went easy on someone out of pity. That didn’t stop the thought from spooking through his head from time to time.

Law didn’t even know why it would bother him so much if Kid pitied him. It was just an apology. It wasn’t like they were friends or something. He would definitely hate a friendship built on pity.

That made him think. Did he want a friendship with Kid? Maybe? From what he heard Kid is really hard to get along with, proven by the small amount of friends the redhead has. So why would Law even consider a friendship with him?

“Earth to Trafalgar Law.” Shachi said, waving his hand in front of Law’s face. It was then that he realized he had just been standing at the table they always claim, staring at nothing.

Law shrugged and took his usual seat. Shachi and Penguin shared a confused look before deciding to not get into it and taking out their study material.

The three of them got into a concentrated state rather easily. It seemed neither Penguin nor Shachi needed a lot of help, which meant Law could really focus on his own subjects.

After a while, Law decided he was in need of a break and got up to get his usual coffee. He didn’t even need to try and communicate to his friends what he was about to do, they knew of his habit and his addiction to the black, bitter beverage.

Before he left the library, he took a glance at Kid, who was busy typing away at his laptop. Seems like he was busy at work. Law shrugged and left to get his coffee.

-

Kid had been working on his assignment for a while now. He needed a break from having his nose in his books, so he had switched to working on this, but he was soon losing his concentration. He had been staring at this screen for too long.

The only time he had looked up was when he saw movement at a certain table, when one of the three people sitting at it had gotten up to get a certain hot beverage.

That was totally coincidental, Kid kept telling himself. It just so happened that his concentration was lower when he got up, which was the reason that he looked up.

Either way, Kid needed a break. He saved his file and closed his laptop. He decided to stretch his legs by looking through the book shelved. He wasn’t looking for anything specific, he just needed to take his mind off of schoolwork for a bit.

His eyes landed on a specific book. Don’t ask him why his eyes fell on that one specifically, but it happened. He took the book and went to the library lady to check the book out, so he could take it back to his room.

He had enough of the library and was getting hungry as well, so he decided to clean up his seat and head back to the dorm.

Kid noticed his roommate wasn’t present, which he wasn’t about to complain about. He didn’t feel like getting bombarded by questions again, because he wasn’t sure how long he could keep dodging them.

He dropped his backpack on his bed and quickly set up his desk so he could go back to studying immediately after eating.

-

When Killer arrived back at the room, the smell of food immediately attacked his nose. He was secretly very glad Kid made dinner, because the blond was starving.

Kid poked his head out of the kitchen when he heard the door close behind his friend. “Food’s almost ready.” he announced before going back into the kitchen.

Killer took off hid coat and walked over to his desk. His eyes glanced over at Kid’s and noticed the book the redhead had picked up at the library earlier.

“Sign language for beginners?” Killer read the title out loud. Why the hell would Kid pick this book up.

Then, it all started to click in his mind. All of a sudden, it all made sense. Kid had a crush on Law! It had been so obvious, how had he not noticed earlier? The signs were so obvious now that he thoughts about it.

Killer guessed it was because he had never seen Kid have a crush on someone before, so his behavior was a total mystery. But going as far as to want to learn sign language? That definitely meant something more!

“Food’s ready!” Kid called.

The blond decided to keep his newfound knowledge to himself, for now at least. He wanted to see if Kid was going to come out with his feelings himself.

Killer entered the kitchen and noticed the redhead had chosen to make his signature dish: Shepherd’s pie. It smelled delicious, and it always tastes great as well. Kid was a surprisingly good cook. It was also said man’s favorite food, so Killer was forced to enjoy it with him.

Kid’s mind was seemingly at another dimension again. That dimension was Law, Killer now knew. He wondered how long it would take for his best friend to reveal everything to him. All he could do for now, is wait.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for this uneventful chapter!  
I promise it'll get more exciting from here on! I have everything planned out!


	5. Unlikely Defender

Law wasn’t stupid. Everyone who knows him could confirm that much. So it wasn’t really surprising he picked up on Eustass Kid’s antics. It wasn’t like he was doing much to begin with, but it was enough to at least draw the attention of the raven-haired male.

It was just hard to ignore the sudden presence of a head of red hair everywhere he went. Law was fully aware Kid had been coming to the library more and more. If he wasn’t mistaken the other had never gone to the library that often. He didn’t really have a reason to since his roommate wasn’t Luffy.

Other than that, Kid seemed to have become a frequent customer of the coffee shop as well, and Law knew that he preferred energy drinks over coffee. Yes… Law had done his own research as well.

It was also really noticeable that Kid was going everywhere without one of his friends with him. This was odd to a lot of people. Very rarely would you see the buff man walk around without the iconic head of blond hair next to him. Even Heat or Wire were missing from his side.

Law had grown so used to the fact the redhead would be studying at the library as well, that he was surprised when today he didn’t seem to show up. It made him wonder if something had happened. Not that he cared or anything, he was just slightly curious by nature.

Penguin raised an eyebrow at Law, who was staring at the vacant seat that was usually occupied by a certain engineering student…. “Is there a ghost sitting there that I can’t see?”

Shachi chuckled and added, “Must be a hot one if you’re staring that much.”

Law rolled his eyes at his friends. “Shouldn’t you idiots be studying? You’re way behind on your schedules.” he snapped back, shutting them up effectively.

He made a mental note to make sure he doesn’t space out too much, at least not when they are with him. This is the second time in a week that they catch him staring. He had been thinking about the same person both times as well! He was going to raise suspicion if he continued on like this. Then again… what was he trying to hide?

-

When Shachi and Penguin started bothering each other because they were too bored with their study material, Law knew it was the best time to go get his routine coffee.

The raven never got used to the cold air hitting his face when he stepped outside. His cheeks immediately got rosy and he hid the bottom of his face in the collar of his jacket, just to at least shield a part of his face from the icy feeling.

He started on the familiar path towards the coffee shop, shoving his hands in the pockets of his coat. Despite being this decked out, the cold would still manage to cut his skin.

He stopped walking when he heard a familiar laugh. Law turned around, a glare already present in his eyes. It was never a good sign when this guy was around. “Now, Law, is that a way to greet someone. You look about ready to kill me.” the boy’s voice said, followed by his feminine cackle.

Law just flipped him off. If he could talk he would tell the other to piss off in rather colorful language, but sadly he was unable to. The boy chuckled again, obviously enjoying the annoyance his presence was causing to the older male in front of him.

“Doffy wants you home for Christmas.” Dellinger announced.

Law couldn’t care less what that stupid flamingo bastard wanted. He didn’t want to celebrate with them, he had no intention to do so either. Of course, Dellinger was very much aware of that.

“If you don’t, he’ll make sure you won’t be able to celebrate New Year’s at Cora’s either.”

Law frowned. Nothing made his blood boil more than hearing one of them talk so familiarly about Corazon. They had no right to act as if they even care about his guardian.

With a sigh, the raven just nodded and turned around to continue to his destination. Dellinger didn’t like being ignored like that.

“I wasn’t done talking to you yet!” he yelled.

Law just continued walking.. He didn’t feel like dealing with Dellinger any longer. The boy was simply annoying and too cocky to be bearable. That all because he had the power of Doflamingo behind him

The younger boy growled and walked up to Law, his heels clicking, and pulled him back by his coat. Even though he was smaller, he was really strong.

“Listen here, you better show up at Christmas. Doffy demands you bring a friend too. Or maybe a lady friend, if you have one of those, somehow.” Dellinger said, quite aggressively.

Law pushed Dellinger off of him, quite done with the boy. He just wanted to get on with his day and get back to studying as well. That angered the blond even more, of course.

To make matters worse, it seemed like Dellinger hadn’t come here alone either. Gladius and Giolla showed themselves as well.

“Tch, Law. Cora really didn’t teach you any manners, did he? How dare you do that to my little Dellinger.” Giolla preached.

Soon enough, Law was surrounded by the three. Of course, Doflamingo wasn’t about to get a message delivered normally. It always had to be as much of an inconvenience as possible. Well, hat off to you, pink bastard, Law was truly pissed off now.

However, the raven-haired male was more than aware that he couldn’t win from these guys. That didn’t mean he was just going to let them beat him up.

Dellinger was having the time of his life, giving them all another hideous cackle. This sent Law over the edge and he lunged at the younger boy, who easily dodged the tattooed fist. Giolla didn’t appreciate the attack on her little boy too much and lunged at Law, who had his back turned to her since he was concentrated on Dellinger.

Law stumbled forward, falling to the ground. He was surprised by the attack. Dellinger started kicking him. He was now down and an easy target.

“What the hell is going on here?!”

The four heads snapped over to the voice. Law’s eyes widened. Of all people, it had to be _him_. The raven-haired wished he just hadn’t decided to interfere. They were nothing to sneeze at.

“Get lost, this is none of your business.” Gladius spat at Kid.

Kid, of course, was having none of that. He wasn’t going to let them beat up the boy that haunted his thoughts. Besides, this hardly seemed like a fair fight. The redhead approached the group, not at all bothered by the threatening tone Gladius had thrown at him. You needed a whole lot more to scare this man.

Law had taken the opportunity to get back up while the rest was distracted by the new challenger. Dellinger had stepped pas Law, too interested in the new person to even care about the raven any longer.

“Let me take care of him, Giolla.” he said, almost pleadingly.

Giolla frowned but nodded. She was always hesitant letting the boy fight, but she knew he could hold his own very well. After all, she had raised him well.

“You’re kidding me? You think this twerp could actually hurt me at all?” Kid honestly tried not to laugh. Seriously, he tried, but he failed.

Dellinger immediately attacked, deciding not to waste any time. After all, Doflamingo wasn’t the most patient person and he was sure the young master was anticipating them getting back soon.

Kid easily caught Dellinger’s foot, which was swinging towards his head, and pulled on it with some force, making Dellinger fall back.

“Don’t make me laugh, you’re hardly a challenge.” Kid said rolling his eyes.

Giolla, going in protective mom mode, attacked as well, but Kid stopped her just as easily, pushing her back and making her fall down next to Dellinger. Both of them were about to get up and attack Kid again, but Gladius stopped them.

“Stop, this is a waste of time… let’s just go.” Gladius said.

He then turned to Law. “Make sure you’re there.”

The three of them left. Kid walked over to Law, who was frowning deeply.

“You okay there?” Kid asked.

Law nodded in response. He had no idea what to do, he wanted to thank Kid for helping him, but he obviously couldn’t speak.

“Okay good.”

Kid was about to turn away and go back to his dorm, but Law stopped him. The redhead turned around and raised an eyebrow at him. The raven held up his hand, signaling the other to wait, and took out his phone and started typing. When he finally got his message down, he handed the phone to Kid.

** _Thank you for helping. Sorry to cause you trouble._ **

Kid shrugged. “It’s no trouble really. Who were they anyway?”

Law took back his phone and started to type again.

** _They’re sort of family, I guess. They like to pick on me. Real assholes if you ask me._ **

Kid chuckled at that message. He somehow could imagine the man in front of him saying this in a really dry way. Which is kind of weird since he had no idea how his voice would sound like, would he be able to talk.

“They did seem like assholes… Well, I won’t hold you any longer. I am sure you were on your way to get your coffee. But uh, let me give you my number. You know, uh, in case they show up again.” Kid said, progressively getting more nervous as he spoke.

A soft smile played on Law’s lips. The redhead was actually flustered and it was kind of adorable. Luckily his smile was hidden by his coat. He then nodded, agreeing with it. He could swear he could see the other’s face light up slightly when he did so.

Kid entered his number into Law’s phone and then handed the phone back.

“See you later then.” he said, giving the raven a last nod and then headed back to his dorm.

While he was walking, his phone buzzed, signaling he had a new message. It was from an unknown number.

** _See you later, Eustass-ya!_ **

Kid couldn’t help but grin at the message. It seemed that the grin hadn’t left his face when he entered his room because Killer gave him a worried look.

-

At last, Law had gotten his poison and gotten back to the library. Penguin and Shachi immediately started bombarding him with questions since he had been gone so long. The raven didn’t bother to answer any of them.

Instead, he concentrated on his study work and checked his phone every now and then, getting a typo-riddled message every now and then. Each and everyone made the corners of his lips turn slightly.

However, the message he got when his phone buzzed next wasn’t one he was too happy with.

** _From Flamingo Bastard: Gladius told me about your friend. Bring him on Christmas. I want to meet him._ **

Something told Law that was an order, not up for debate. Exactly that made him worry.


	6. Plans

After the incident with Dellinger, Giolla and Gladius, Kid and Law seemed to have adapted a new sort of relationship. Whereas they didn’t usually interact before and just accepted the other existed, they now actually acknowledged each other.

When they would cross each other on campus, they would greet each other. They even occasionally texted each other. It seemed like they were starting to develop a friendship, which was highly concerning Law’s friends, who were still afraid of the redhead.

Killer was actually glad about this change. He could tell Kid’s mood was significantly better since he started texting with Law. It also pretty much confirmed his suspicions about Kid’s feelings towards the other male.

At the moment, Kid was studying at his desk in Killer and his’ room. Only a week left before finals started, so he was trying to be as prepared as possible. The only thing that occasionally made him look away from his books was the occasional buzzing of his phone.

** _Trafalgar: Have you taken a break yet, Eustass-ya?_ **

Don’t ask Kid why Law insisted on adding the ‘-ya’, he wouldn’t be able to answer. However, he would be lying if he said he didn’t think it was sort of endearing.

** _Me: Shouldn’t you be concentrating on your work, idiot?_ **

** _Trafalgar: Thought so, meet me at the coffee shop in 10 minutes. Get your ass off your chair!_ **

Kid chuckled out loud. Law was unexpectedly rude, and he was all there for it. The sudden noise made Killer look up from his work, and wasn’t surprised to find his friend staring at his phone.

The redhead then got up and put on his shoes as well as his jacket. “I’m taking a break, Killer. I’ll be back in a bit.” he said before he left the room.

-

Law grinned at his phone as he sent his last message. The corners of his lips always turned upwards when he was texting with Kid, which Penguin and Shachi made a game out of pointing out every time they could.

He arrived at the coffee shop and waited for Kid. What made him so sure the other male was coming? He stopped replying. If he wasn’t going to come, the redhead would have replied with a snarky text, telling him off.

Something told Law that Kid didn’t mind to be ordered around a bit, every now and then. Then the familiar head of red hair came into view, once again causing the raven to grin.

“You know, Trafalgar, normally when you invite someone, you do so without being rude.” Kid said, unable to hide his own amusement.

Law rolled his eyes, but couldn’t stop his grin. He then nodded towards the door and went inside, the taller male following behind him.

The two of them ordered their drinks, Law picking his usual black coffee, while Kid chose something that disguised the taste of coffee as much as possible. The raven-haired male thought it was kind of cute how Kid agreed to drink coffee, even though he clearly didn’t like it.

After getting their drinks, they stepped back outside and went for a walk around campus. Law had insisted on the walk, since the redhead was holed up in his room to study all day, not moving around at all Of course, he himself wasn’t much better, but that he wouldn’t admit to the other.

“So uh… did any of those assholes bother you again?” Kid asked. The smaller of the two shook his head in response. The two of them fell into a silence again after that. Neither of them minded though.

Then, Law sighed. He knew he had to ask Kid at some point, might as well ask it now. He took his phone and started typing his question, hitting send. Not much later Kid’s phone buzzed with a message. It was the easiest way for Law to convey what he wanted to say.

** _Trafalgar: What are you doing with Christmas?_ **

Kid read the text and then shrugged. “Probably just staying here. Normally I celebrate with Killer, but he is going out of the country with his family this year.”

Law nodded and started typing away again. He wasn’t sure how his new friend would react to the question, but he was about to find out, wasn’t he?

** _Trafalgar: Want to celebrate with us? They want me to bring someone anyway._ **

He made sure not to specify the fact that they had specifically asked for Kid to be present. If he would have, Kid would definitely would have been scared away from him in general.

Kid raised an eyebrow as he read that. He didn’t know how to react. Was Law even being for real? It just seemed like a bit of a weird question to ask someone you barely knew, like they did. That didn’t mean he wasn’t actually considering it, though.

The redhead’s silence was starting to worry Law. Did he think he was weird for asking? Did give off a wrong vibe by doing so? Did he scare him away? These questions kept running through his mind.

Kid realized he was being rude by not answering. But he really didn’t know how to. Should he go? Should he decline? He had no idea what the right choice was here. Then again, maybe the question wasn’t what the right answer is, maybe it was what it is that he wanted. And what did he want?

“Uhm, yeah sure. I mean, it’s not like I have anything else to do.” he finally managed to say.

Law almost let out a sigh of relief. Seemed like he didn’t weird out his new friend. He also was very happy with the answer. At least he would have some sanity during his time there in the form of Eustass Kid. Admittedly, he felt kind of sorry for putting Kid through a night with his ‘family’.

“I should go back to my room now though. First exam tomorrow, I want to be prepared.” Kid announced.

Law just nodded. He should probably do the same. He waved after the redhead, who said a lazy goodbye and walked away.

While entering his dorm, Kid received a message. He knew who it was from at this point, and he nearly chuckled at how Law just simply couldn’t seem to go a full twenty minutes without texting.

** _Trafalgar: You better pass that exam, don’t want anyone thinking I hang out with dumb people._ **

“Rude.” Kid muttered, smiling all the while, as he sat down at his desk to get back to his study work.

-

The exam period passed by far too slow for Kid’s liking. Luckily, there was that one half an hour every day that saved his sanity. The coffee breaks with Law. He swore, if the exam period would have lasted for a week longer, he would have started to like coffee.

The raven also agreed that those coffee breaks were a saving grace in this stressful period. Mostly because he was often driven crazy by Penguin and Shachi. If they weren’t asking him for help, they were pestering him with questions about his new friendship with Kid.

Either way, the two of them were rather glad the exams were finally over. The much needed winter break had finally arrived. The only thing left to dread for Law, was Christmas evening. The only reason for that was the damn flamingo that was forcing him to celebrate it with them.

-

Killer was packing his suitcase to leave for home. Kid, being the good friend and roommate that he is, helped him out. Neither of them would admit it, but they were going to miss each other. They grew up together and were very close. This would also be the first Christmas they weren’t celebrating together. Luckily, the blond would be back for the New Year’s party.

“I’m sorry we can’t celebrate together this year.” Killer said. That must have been the thirtieth time already.

“Killer, it’s fine. I can survive a few days with you not around, you know?” Kid joked.

The blond smiled at his friend and chuckled slightly. Yes, he would surely miss the redhead during his absence. However, what was even worse was the fact that he couldn’t keep track of how it would be going between him and Law. After all, they were spending Christmas together.

Killer had to admit he was kind of rooting for them. The genuine happiness that Kid radiated when he was messaging the mute boy. Or even the huge smile he carried as he left the room to go meet up with the man. It was a good change from the people pissing off the redhead all the time.

Soon enough, they finished packing and Killer received a message from his parents that they were there to pick him up.

“Behave while I’m gone.” Killer said only half-jokingly, his friend had a knack of getting himself in trouble after all.

Kid rolled his eyes and chuckled a little. “You know I can’t promise that.”

Killer laughed at that. He hadn’t expected anything else. He then got in the car and waved at his friends as he drove off with his family.

Kid sighed and headed back to their room. It immediately felt emptier now that the blond wasn’t here anymore. He packed his own backpack. He wasn’t leaving yet, but he knew himself. He’d be adding a lot of stuff during the course of the coming days that he only thought of then. He was bad at packing.

After that, he went by Heat and Wire. They were going home for Christmas as well and he wanted to see them off, just like he did Killer. He always insisted on doing that when either of his friends went home for a period of time.

The whole time, Kid couldn’t help but think that these were going to be some interesting holidays.


	7. On The Road

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Law and Kid hit the road, on their way to the Donquixote mansion.

Law entered the unfamiliar dormitory. It wasn’t much different from his own. Then again, how different could dormitories really look? He needed some time to find the stairs though, since he’d never been here before. Not that he ever had a reason to be here to begin with.

Once he found the way, he checked his texts again to make sure he was headed to the right floor and room. Luckily, he found the right place rather quickly and found himself in front of the door. After taking a deep breath, he knocked.

The door swung open, revealing a wild head of red hair. Sure, Kid’s hair was always more on the wild side, but this time it was exceptionally bad. He was dressed in a pair of sweatpants and a loose-fitting t-shirt. Something told Law that the man before him had just gotten out of bed.

“You’re early…” Kid muttered, stepping aside to let his mute friend in.

Law entered the room and saw that, luckily, it was much less of a mess than the redhead himself.

“Sorry… I guess I overslept.”

Law just grinned at him and shrugged, signaling that he really wasn’t bothered by that.

“I am going to take a shower. Make yourself comfortable. Also, feel free to take a drink from the fridge. I will sadly have to inform you that we don’t have any of that mud that you drink.” Kid said before heading to the bathroom o shower.

Law watched after him as he left and only looked away from the bathroom door when he heard the water of the shower turn on. He took a look at the room he was currently in. It was surprisingly empty, which was probably because both its residents were leaving for a while.

Nothing seemed special about the room at all. Then again, maybe most rooms are like that, it was hard to know since he roomed with Luffy, which is one of the least normal people running around this campus.

His eyes then fell on Kid’s desk. He walked over and saw that there were a few pictures on the wall. Law took the time to look at them. He recognized the blond that was always with Kid. The other two that were often on the pictures were also vaguely familiar.

The pictures made the corners of his mouth twitch upwards. Who knew the brutish man had a soft spot for his friends. However, he had already figured the redhead wasn’t always the brute, angry man he tried to look like he was.

Other than those pictures of Kid and his friends, there was very little personal memorabilia to be found on Kid’s side of the room. Not a single picture of a parent either. It made Law wonder how Kid’s relationship with his family was.

Law didn’t have any more time to look around as he heard the water flow stop. He decided to go grab a can of cola from the fridge in the kitchen and then sat down on Kid’s bed.

The redhead emerged from the bathroom and already looked much more alive than he had when he opened the door. Then again, there was always a certain ‘dead’ aesthetic when you looked at kid. The pale skin and lack of eyebrows didn’t help with that, Law figured. Neither did the make-up.

Law liked Kid’s make-up. He thought it was bold for a man to wear make-up so openly at a school campus. Youngsters were ruthless after all. Then again, not many people would like to pick a fight with the man.

The bigger man put on his jacket and collected his stuff, lastly also grabbing his car keys. He then turned around to Law and nodded to the door.

“Ready to go?” he asked.

Law simply nodded and followed the other outside of the room. Kid lead him towards the parking and stopped at his jeep. He opened the door to the back of the car and threw his stuff in. Law followed his example and then got in the passenger seat, while Kid got in the driver’s seat.

Kid then took out his GPS and handed it to Law, asking him to enter the address. The raven-haired male did as he was told and then handed the GPS back when he finished. The other put it up on the windshield and quickly checked the road.

It would be a 5-hour drive to the Donquixote house. That was alright, Kid thought, it wasn’t that long. Besides, he wasn’t alone, so that immediately made the drive more bearable.

When he looked over to Law, he noticed that the male was looking rather nervous. Kid frowned at that. Had he done something to make him look so worried? Or was it something else plaguing the other’s mind.

“Are you okay there? I promise I am a good driver. I won’t get us killed.” Kid said, trying to keep a bit of humor in it. Some people would argue it was to hide his actual worry.

Law did his best to hide his small smile. The other was terrible at hiding the worry in his voice, and it was adorable. The smile faded fast though, his mind shifting back to the eccentric man they would be seeing soon.

The raven just gave a nod at Kid, hoping it was good enough for now. The fact that the male just turned around and started the car told him that he was off the hook for now.

The drive was mostly quiet, in part because having a conversation while driving was difficult. It’s not like Law could text his replies right now. He wasn’t about to put their lives in danger in favor of some meaningless conversation.

After about 2 hours of driving, Kid decided he needed a chance to stretch his legs and stopped at a gas station. He needed to fill up his tank anyway. After he did that, he parked at the side and got out, stretching.

Law got out as well and took the opportunity to get some fresh air. His eyes traveled to the redhead and couldn’t help but think how hard to believe it would be if you told anyone at the start of the semester that the two of them would become friends. Even more celebrate Christmas together.

However, he wasn’t about to complain about the change of events. He enjoyed Eustass’ presence, although he wouldn’t dare admit that to Penguin or Shachi. They wouldn’t let him live it down. Ever. They’d say he has a crush on the redhead, which was ridiculous. Was it?

Kid felt a pair of eyes on him and looked up. Law’s eyes were definitely on him, but his mind seemed to be in a different realm. He raised an eyebrow at the mute, who seemingly came back in earth as he quickly shifted away his gaze.

He almost started chuckling at the sight. The other was completely embarrassed about being caught staring. Kid grabbed his backpack from the backseat and started looking through his stuff.

“Hey Trafalgar. Catch.” he said, drawing the attention of said man, and threw him a can of iced coffee.

Law blinked at the can and then looked back at Kid. He then gave him a grateful nod, which Kid returned as he acknowledged it. He then opened his own can of Redbull, because he preferred that kind of poison, and drank.

After both finished their beverages, they got back into the car and the drive continued. Law got a bit bored in the car so he started to play with the car radio. It was slowly getting on Kid’s nerves.

“Pick a station.” Kid snapped.

Law was a bit taken back by the tone, but he soon recovered. He wasn’t one to let himself get told what to do like that. Instead of doing what the other had asked, he started to change the station even more, just to test what his reaction would be.

Slowly but surely, you could tell Kid was losing his cool. However, he really didn’t want to snap at Law again. He felt kind of bad for doing so earlier to begin with. He hated his short temper sometimes.

However, the changing of the stations was really off-putting when he was concentrating on the road, so he decided to put an end to that in a different way. With the simple klick of a button, the music changed from the radio to the songs on his USB-stick, swapping the peppy pop-music for more alternative emo-rock.

Law had not expected this outcome. He had kind of hoped the redhead would snap again. After all, it was kind of cute to see his face flush with anger. So, Law did what Law always did when he didn’t get what he wanted. He started pouting.

Kid glanced at Law from the corner of his eyes, only to see him sitting with his arms crossed. He had also glided down his seat a little, making his sweater ride up a bit, exposing the skin underneath. Kid scolded himself to not focus on that.

Trafalgar’s eyes were staring at the road in front of him. Well, glaring would be a more accurate description of his look, really. His lips were pressed into a thin line.

“Are you seriously that upset about the radio?” Kid asked, slightly amused with the sight.

Law didn’t say anything. Well, duh, it’s not like he could to begin with. But the lack of reaction kind of bothered Kid. He would have preferred the other flipping him off over this. The last thing he had wanted to do was seriously piss off his companion.

With a roll of his eyes, Kid switched back to the radio. It was like driving with a child. Law was once again surprised by Eustass’ behavior. He had fully expected the other to be stubborn and refuse to change back or apologize or something. Yet, he still did.

Law sat back up straight and did dare to spare the other a look again. However, he wisely decided to not test the redhead’s patience again and left the radio alone. Only occasionally changing the station when the music really wasn’t his taste. Luckily, Kid could live with that.

The time was ticking by, and the closer they were getting to their destination, the fiddlier Law became. He was clearly and uneasy about the prospect of arriving at that house. Of course, Kid took notice of this. It made him worry somewhat. He also didn’t know the reason behind his friend’s worry and started to wonder if he should be worried as well.

When they were only thirty minutes away and Law started to shift from position every two minutes, Kid decided to go to the side of the road and stop the car.

“Listen. I don’t know what’s up with you and that ‘family’ of yours, nor is it any of my business. But you are clearly uneasy about all of this. I just want to know if there is something I should be worried about or if there is anything I can do to help you feel more at ease. Because I promise you, you won’t be able to handle a whole Christmas eve like this.” Kid said.

Law stared at Kid a bit. Of course he would have noticed his unease, it was probably pretty much written on his forehead. He felt a bit bad for not telling Kid about the difficult relationship he had with Doflamingo and his family. Then again, it wasn’t really of the redhead’s business. The situation was difficult to explain as well.

It did make Law feel bad for dragging him into all of this. He would be forced to deal with all these assholes, all just because Law wanted some comfort during this whole ordeal. Of course, Doflamingo’s order to bring him along was partially at fault here too.

Law took out his phone and started typing away. He at least owed Eustass some sort of explanation. Said man was waiting patiently for him to finish typing.

** _We are going to my adoptive father’s brother. I don’t like him very much. He is a manipulative asshole. I am just forced to put up with his bullshit because he can make sure I don’t get to see my adoptive father at all. He might bother you a bit, for which I apologize. He will probably try to make you feel uncomfortable. Please just try not to start any fights. I promise you, you won’t win any against him._ **

Kid read the message calmly. The serious look on Law’s face told him he really meant that last part, and he made sure to keep that in mind. He handed back the phone and started the car again, ready to cover the last part of the drive.

The lack of a response from Kid made Law frown. He didn’t know what the redhead was thinking now, and it bothered him to no end. However he was pretty sure the other wouldn’t do anything reckless. His look conveyed that he took the whole thing very seriously.

All Law could do for now was hope that Christmas wasn’t going to be a complete disaster and he didn’t ruin the friendship he was building with Kid. If those two conditions were to be fulfilled, he could praise himself a lucky man.


	8. Meet The 'Family'

The pair finally arrived at the house. It was a rather huge villa. Then again, Law had texted him before that they lived with quite a few people here, so the size of this place shouldn’t be too surprising. What was more surprising though, was how extra and expensive everything looked. The owner of this house must be filthy rich.

Kid could tell that Law needed a second to prepare himself to go in, so he remained seated for a few more moments. Those moments passed in complete silence, and the mute silently thanked the male beside him.

Then, Law stepped out of the car. Kid took that as a sign the other was ready to go in and got out as well, walking to the other male’s side. Law stood in front of the front door, looking at the doorbell. Kid put his hand on his shoulder and gave it a light, encouraging squeeze.

Law probably wouldn’t admit it, but the warmth of the redhead’s hand was really comforting, and the simple gesture helped him relax just a little. After taking a deep breath, he finally rang the doorbell.

The door opened and immediately Law got attacked by a huge, white dog. Well, dog was hardly the word to use to describe the animal. It looked more like a polar bear. The dog had tackled the tall male to the ground and was licking his face.

Law couldn’t help but chuckle and brought his hands to pet the dog. The man sat up straight and kept petting the dog. Kid couldn’t help but smile at the sight. It was downright adorable. Of course, the moment had to be ruined.

“Took you long enough to get here.” Dellinger’s feminine voice said, drawing both boy’s attention towards him.

The blond grinned up at Law and then at Kid. He seemed rather pleased to see that Law had kept his promise to bring his friend. He was clearly hoping for some kind of opportunity to fight he bigger man. Dellinger then turned around and walked inside the house.

Law hit his leg, signaling the dog to follow him, and went inside. Kid, of course, followed closely behind. He couldn’t help but wonder how this was going to turn out. He had no idea what these people were like, but if Dellinger was anything to go by, it couldn’t be very good.

“Ah, Law. The young master has been expecting you.”

The person talking was a disgusting looking man. He was slightly taller than Kid and had a snotty nose. Honestly, everything about this man looked snotty. Overall, Kid decided the less he would see of this man, the better

Then, a girl with long black hair and a purple dress came in the room to see what was going on. She saw Law and immediately went over to hug him, which he clearly wasn’t too thrilled about.

A fat guy followed behind the girl, seemingly having a stupid grin stuck permanently on his face. Kid wondered how this strange bunch of people came to be. At the same time though, he didn’t really care.

“Baby 5, let him go. Doffy is waiting for him to go introduce his friend.” the fatty said, pointedly looking at Kid.

The girl, Baby 5, let go of Law to glare at the fatty. “Oh shut it, Buffalo, we haven’t seen Law in such a long time.”

Law, however, really seemed to be happy to be out of her grasp, and had taken a few steps backward. He was now standing next to Kid again, where he visibly looked was more comfortable. Not that Kid could really blame him.

The snotty man then stepped up to Law and motioned to a big door. Law just nodded and followed the man towards the door, who also motioned at Kid to follow. The three males went through the door, which lead do an office.

The office was rather huge and extravagant. Nearly all the interior was either shiny, pink, feathery or a combination. Kid hated it. Then, his gaze went up to the desk that is at the opposite of the room. The desk was also very big, with a throne-like chair. A rather tall man was sitting on the chair. He was blond and was waring the uglies pink feather coat Kid had ever seen.

Due to the aesthetic of the man, he assumed that was Doflamingo. The man was waring a huge grin and looking was clearly focused on Kid and Law, even though his eyes were hidden by pink sunglasses.

“Fufufufu, finally arrived I see.” he said, getting up from his chair.

He walked over to the two youngsters and circled around them a bit, mostly to study Kid a bit. Neither of them moved. Law mostly because he knows better than to get in the way, and Kid just followed his friend’s example.

Doflamingo stopped in front of Kid, grinning down at the boy. “So you’re the one that caused my family trouble huh? Don’t seem so special to me.”

The redhead decided to not let anything this man said bother him. After all, he didn’t know the man and didn’t have a reason to care. The one that was bothered by the words were Law, surprisingly.The mute didn’t take too kindly to people insulting his friends. Especially when it came to the fact that hey saved him from those assholes he was forced to call ‘family’.

“Anyway, I am glad you’re here for Christmas.” Doflamingo said, although none of that seemed sincere, and he turned to the snotty man.

“Trebol. Show these boys to their room.”

Trebol motioned the boys to follow him, which they did. Kid did no effort whatsoever to hide his disgust for the man. Everything about him just seemed downright filthy.

Trebol lead them up the stairs, leading to a long hallway with many doors leading to different rooms. The men kept walking until the oldest of them stopped in front of a door. There was a sign on the door which was carved away, but it was still kind of readable that the name ‘Law’ was written on it.

“Here you go boys. Do try to behave.” Trebol said before walking away.

Law’s eyes widened. Wait what? Wasn’t Kid going to get his own room? There were more than rooms enough here, so they could easily give him one.

“What a disgusting man.” Kid muttered, watching after Trebol. Law nodded in agreement.

He opened the door and stepped back into the room where he had spent some part of his childhood at. It felt weird to be back there. He hadn’t entered this room in years, and it pretty much still looked the way it had when he had last seen it.

Law dropped his bag on the bed, allowing for place for Kid to enter as well, who couldn’t help but take a good look around. The raven-haired male decided to close the door, since he didn’t want any annoying visitors to enter, but Bepo managed to slip in before the door closed. He couldn’t help but smile at the white dog.

The boy then turned to his friend, who stood there kind of awkwardly because he didn’t know what to do or how to act. He clearly felt out of place in this unfamiliar environment. Law took out his phone and texted the other.

** _You can relax now, Kid-ya. You’ve met the worst one already._ **

Kid chuckled a little at the message. “Did I really seem that tense?” he asked.

Law nodded and walked over to his closet, pulling out a mattress to set up for Kid. After all, the other needed a place to sleep as well and seeing as they didn’t seem willing to give him a room, this would have to do.

Kid noticed the slender male was struggling with the rather heavy mattress and helped him out. They shoved aside the desk and put down the mattress. Law also threw some pillows and blankets on the mattress as well. He figured Kid didn’t really care about a neatly made bed.

The moment they were done, Bepo decided that the mattress would be where he would settle, making himself comfortable on the blankets. Kid smiled at the dog and kneeled down, petting the animal.

Law couldn’t keep his smile hidden watching them. His smile then turned into a frown though. He couldn’t help but wonder what the dog was doing here in the first place. Bepo lived with Corazon after all.

There was a knock on the door. The mute boy decided not to open the door, he would rather not be bothered by Dellinger of Buffalo. Baby 5 he could live with. Sometimes.

Another knock was to be heard, making him sigh. He knew that whoever it was, wasn’t going to just go away even if he ignored them. Damn this family and its tendency to be stubborn as hell. To be fair, he had inherited that trait as well.

Law unlocked the door and opened it, revealing a tall, blonde man who was wearing a feathery coat, akin to the one Doflamingo had been wearing, but instead of the atrocious pink color, it was black. The young man recognized the man immediately and hugged him.

The man hugged back, and once they let go of each other, his eyes settled on Kid. He gave the younger male a greeting nod, which the other returned.

“Is this the young man that got under my brother’s skin?”

Law nodded, while Kid just looked at them with a bit of confusion. He has felt nothing but lost ever since he had arrived at the Donquixote mansion.

“My name is Corazon. I am Law’s legal guardian.” the man explained.

Bepo jumped up when he heard Corazon’s voice and happily trotted over to the man, who bent down and pet the dog. Law tapped Cora on the shoulder to draw his attention, and then nodded his head curtly. Apparently, that was more than enough for the blond to guess what he meant.

“Right, you must be wondering what I am doing here. Well, good news and bad news.” the man started.

“Good news is, I will be celebrating Christmas here. “

Law’s face visibly brightened. He was clearly excited at the prospect of being able to celebrate Christmas with his guardian. Kid could tell the two of them had a good relationship. Unlike the relationship Law seemed to have with all the others.

“Bad news is, I will not be able to celebrate New Year’s with you. Work got in the way.”

And the excitement Law had shown before was completely gone again. It almost broke Kid’s heart to see the change in mood. This change obviously hadn’t gone unnoticed by Corazon either.

“Oh cheer up, Law. I am here now, aren’t I? Besides, you can still stay with me for a few days, so you won’t be missing out on anything.” the man said with a smile that immediately seemed to soothe Law.

Kid felt like he was intruding somewhat. It was clear the two hadn’t seen each other in a long while and they were having a reunion. He shifted on his feet uneasily and then decided to keep himself busy by giving Bepo some attention.

Law’s eyes shifted to his friend and Bepo. He was sure he would never get sick of watching Kid’s softer side. Corazon smiled and touched Law’s shoulder.

“We can catch up later, you spend some time with your friend now.” he said, and then left the room.

Kid looked up. “I can’t promise I won’t kidnap this dog after the Christmas party.” he jokes, making Law smile again.

Law was already sure that bringing Kid along had been a good idea. The redhead would keep him sane through the evening. He couldn’t help but wonder how their friendship would develop after this. It didn’t really matter, as long as they would still be friends in the future, he’d be happy.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you like the story so far!  
The updates will be slower from now on, since I have exams coming up!  
I will update when possible!


	9. Merry Christmas

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Law and Kid celebrate Christmas at the Donquixote Mansion!

Time passed by far too quickly for Law’s liking. It was like the universe wasn’t willing to give him any time to mentally prepare himself for a whole night with these energy-draining people. Then again, there was no use in pitying himself.

It was getting late and it was time for the two young males to get ready for the Christmas party. A party at the Donquixote house was always extravagant, so a fancy dress code was in order.

Law had shown Kid to one of the many bathrooms of the mansion, so the redhead could freshen up and get changed. The raven-haired male had then gone to a different one to get ready himself.

He took a shower, longer than necessary, and then got dressed. He had chosen to wear a simple black suit that he once got from Corazon. It wasn’t anything special, but it was fancy enough to fit Doflamingo’s unspoken dress code.

He took some wax to somewhat style his hair. It didn’t look any less messy than usual, but thanks to the wax it looked like that was his intention. He glared at himself a bit, wondering why he was even trying so hard to please a man he hated.

With one last look at himself and a deep sigh, he stepped out of the bathroom. He almost immediately collided with something hard. That something hard turned out to be Kid.

“Already drunk?” Kid joked, grinning at his friend, who needed a second to process.

Law looked at Kid and had to admit he cleaned up quite nicely. Kid was wearing black dress pants and a dark red shirt, which contrasted a lot with his pale skin. His usually wild red hair was also slicked back. He looked so good Law couldn’t help stare a little.

It wasn’t until Kid cleared his throat that Law seemed to come back to reality. He couldn’t help but blush a bit at getting caught.

“Are you ready?” Kid asked, and Law just nodded. It wasn’t like the universe would wait till he would be ready. He doubted he would ever be.

The two went down the stairs. It seemed like many members of the Donquixote family were still getting ready, since the only ones in the living room so far were Corazon, Buffalo, Baby 5 and the two of them.

Law sat down on the couch next to Corazon, Kid about to take the place next to him, but Buffalo took it quickly before the redhead could.

Kid rolled his eyes and took a seat on an empty couch. It wasn’t hard to guess what they were trying to do here. They wanted to separate them so they could thoroughly interrogate Kid. Law glared at Buffalo, obviously not pleased with the boy’s presence.

Slowly but surely, more and more members started to fill up the living room, all dressed up nicely of course. Kid got introduced to people he hadn’t met earlier yet, including Diamante, Pica, Vergo, Sugar, Lao G, Senor Pink, Monet and Machvise.

Kid was sure he wouldn’t be able to even repeat half the names he learned that evening by the end of it. The spot next to him got taken by Dellinger, who was obviously pleased with this. The redhead wasn’t as pleased. In fact, he would have been happy if he would never have to see the blond again.

The teens had no choice but to go along with the whole ordeal. It was just for one night, they kept telling themselves, after that they were free to be themselves again.

The living room was quiet. Nobody felt the need to strike up a conversation. Very rarely someone said something to another. It was clear they were waiting for the man of the house.

Doflamingo entered the living room, dressed in a red suit, but still had his pink feathery coat around his shoulders. His grin was as wide as ever, and only got wider when he noticed the family had successfully split Law and Kid up.

The grin caused a look of worry on the face of his brother. Corazon couldn’t help but wonder why Doffy was so interested in Law’s new friend. It wasn’t like he had shown the same interest in Penguin and Shachi. Then again, even he had to admit it was clear Kid and Law’s friendship was quite different from the raven’s friendship with the other two.

Doflamingo sat down on a throne-like sofa and then called for some servants, who brought in drinks and food for the family to enjoy. It seemed that was all that the family needed to start up some conversations.

Law looked over at Kid, slightly concerned about the current situation. It seemed like Kid was just planning to remain quiet and observe, which the mute had to agree was most likely the best thing to do. Keep a low profile.

Of course, Dellinger wouldn’t allow for that to happen. The blond turned to Kid and spoke up, determined to keep the other talking.

“I wonder how you and Law got to know each other.”

“None of your business.” Kid grumbled as a reply.

Dellinger had an amused grin on his face. The grumpiness of the redhead seemed to entertain him quite a bit.

“You seem close. You must be friends for a while now.” Dellinger stated, hoping to draw a reaction.

Kid just shrugged. “Not particularly.”

Dellinger wouldn’t be scared away by Kid’s short answers. After all, the blond had a knack of getting on people’s nerves. That’s why he had gotten the mission to draw out all the information he could on the relationship between Law and Kid.

“I don’t really get why you two get along at all. After all, Law is so weak. Plus, he can’t even talk. He is just boring. You’re far stronger and more interesting than him. You should look for better friends.”

Literally every word that left Dellinger’s mouth got on Kid’s nerves more and more. He personally enjoyed Law’s company. He hadn’t felt that at ease with a person since he became friends with Killer, which was quite a long time ago.

The redhead, of course, knew what the blond was trying to do. He was trying to either get Kid to say something they could use against him, or start a fight. He wasn’t planning on giving him the pleasure of either so he just got up and excused himself under the guise of having to use the bathroom.

He went to the bathroom for a minute to not raise any suspicion and to collect himself. He had to admit he was a bit nervous with the situation.

Kid couldn’t help but wonder what he was even doing here. He felt so out of place between these people and he didn’t even know Law that long. However, the moment he thought about his raven-haired friend, a feeling settled in his stomach, reminding him that it really didn’t matter how long he knew him. He would have never been able to say no.

Kid took a deep breath. It was time for him to go back, but he was determined to not let anyone get to him. He was here for Law, and even though he couldn’t do much, he could at least just be there for him. It was clear that him just being here was already helpful for the mute.

The redhead left the bathroom and was greeted by a wide grin that sent shivers through his whole body. Doflamingo clearly towered over the already tall boy.

“Perfect timing.” the taller male said.

Kid just nodded as a response, suddenly eager to get back to the living room He felt far from at ease here, alone with Doflamingo. He was about to move, but Doffy took his arm, stopping him.

“I don’t know what kind of relationship you and Law have, but allow me to give you a piece of advice.”

The tone of Doflamingo’s voice sounded very threatening, actually making Kid worried about what he was about to say next. The grip on his arm tightened.

“Just make sure you don’t get hurt protecting someone you barely know.”

With those words, the strong grip on Kid’s arm disappeared and the older man entered the bathroom. Kid swallowed and needed a second to get rid of his surprised, and admittedly slightly fearful, expression.

He was sure he was worrying Law by now and swiftly went back to the living room. To his relief, he noticed Buffalo had taken a different seat and he could now take his place next to Law, who immediately shot him a worried look.

Kid just shrugged it off, assuring he was alright and they needed to do a lot more to get him to crack. He wouldn’t speak of the encounter he had just had, it wasn’t necessary for Law to know. The redhead also noticed Corazon was missing from the crowd.

“Are you holding up alright?” Kid asked.

Law nodded in reply and took his phone so he could type. The raven-haired man was eager to finally have a conversation with someone he got along with. He’d communicate with Corazon more, but the older male insisted on staying quiet around the rest of the family. Law, of course, respected his wishes.

** _Dellinger was pretty pissed that he wasn’t getting to you. His face was pretty priceless. Thank you for that, it almost made my evening._ **

Kid couldn’t help but laugh at the message. It was just something so typical for Law to say, and the accompanying grin on the raven’s face really made it all complete.

“You’re so very welcome. I might be slightly upset I didn’t get to see it.” he chuckled.

The two of them continued on like that for a little while, mostly just saying rude and mean things about the members of the Donquixote family. Of course, this didn’t go unnoticed by the other guests.

Then it was time for dinner. The whole party moved to a large table that was completely covered in food. Kid had to admit that it all looked very delicious, and expensive too. There was no doubt in his mind this would be the fanciest meal he ever had. Or would have for that matter.

Luckily, Buffalo was too slow to take the place next to Law, allowing Kid to stay near the raven. Something told the redhead Buffalo had some kind of plan to ruin Law’s evening, and he simply wouldn’t allow it if he could help it.

The meal went by without any incidents. Only the occasional person that would inquire about Kid and Law’s friendship. Law, of course, couldn’t respond to any of their questions and Kid’s curt manner of replying soon made them cease their questioning.

After dinner, a lot of people were starting to get tired and excused themselves one by one. The only ones still awake were Doflamingo himself, Corazon, Baby 5, Dellinger, Kid and Law.

The last two had excused themselves from the table and went back to the living room. They had both agreed they had had enough of the family’s questions and were looking for some peace. The two had settled on a couch, both resting against one of the sides of the couch, legs resting next to each other’s.

Bepo had taken the opportunity to join them and had settled on their legs. The large white dog was now peacefully snoring while Law was mindlessly petting his head.

“I’d say we survived that pretty well. After all, I didn’t try to break the little blondie’s bones.” Kid said.

Law chuckled and nodded. The evening had indeed gone by well. Much better than he would have ever hoped. He guessed he had just worried needlessly. He was just very glad Kid had been by his side this night. He found comfort in the other’s presence. He was sure that if the redhead hadn’t been there, he would’ve tried to kill someone here.

“Hey Law?” Kid said, drawing the other’s attention.

“You don’t have anything to do with New Year’s right?”

Law shook his head. He would normally spend it with Corazon, but that plan was out of the picture now.

“Killer always has a huge party at his house on New Year’s. It’s a lot of fun. I am sure he wouldn’t mind if you came too. I could even come pick you up if you want.”

Kid figured it wouldn’t hurt to suggest. After all, the raven-haired male was the reason he wasn’t celebrating Christmas alone right now. As weird as it had been he was truly grateful not to be alone.

Law thought about it for a second before nodding. It sounded like a great way to spend his New Year’s. Sure, it would be weird not doing it like he was used to, but if he could celebrate it with Kid instead, he would be able to live with that.

He then checked the clock and noticed it was 3 in the morning. It was about time to get to bed. He nudged Kid’s leg with his own and nodded to the clock, making his intention clear. Kid nodded and woke up Bepo, who wasn’t too pleased with his sleep being disturbed.

The pair freed their legs form the dog and then got up and headed up the stairs. Law changed into a loose t-shirt and some pajama pants in the bathroom while Kid changed in the bedroom.

The two crawled in their respective beds, quite content to call it a night. However, before he could sleep, Law just had to send Kid one last message.

** _Thank you for coming with me._ **

That night Kid fell asleep with the largest smile on his face.


	10. Christmas Day

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy 2020 everyone!  
Sorry this chapter is uneventful.  
This is the last one I have in my drafts so the next one might take a while since I am in my exams until January 23.  
I promise next chapter will be better!

The following morning, Kid got up way before everyone else. He had gotten dressed quickly and gotten his stuff as quietly as possible as to not wake up the still sleeping Law. After all, he looked so peaceful while asleep.

Kid had informed Law the night before that he had to leave early because he had something to do. While that was not a lie, there was no reason for him to leave so early other than that he just wanted to get it over with.

He dropped his bag on the passenger seat and then got in the driver’s seat of his jeep. As he turned the keys, he looked at the mansion one last time. He couldn’t help but think about the words Doflamingo had spoken to him the previous night.

_“Just make sure you don’t get hurt protecting someone you barely know.”_

He didn’t really know what to think of it. Was it an empty threat in an attempt to scare him away from Law? Why would the older man want that to begin with? He shook his head. That would be something to worry about later. He had something important to do now.

He drove away, head occupied with many thoughts, however none of them were related to the Christmas party the previous night.

-

Law woke up and looked over to the mattress Kid had slept on. He was sort of disappointed to not see the familiar head of red hair, but then remembered that the other had to leave early. That didn’t mean he hadn’t hoped Kid would still be there after all.

He sat up straight and got out of the bed slowly, still feeling rather tired. However, he knew Cora would be up soon, and he would love to leave as fast as possible. He didn’t want to spend any more time at this stupid mansion than he had to.

The young man went to the bathroom to take a shower. It helped him clear his thoughts. Those thoughts wandered over to the now-familiar redhead. He wondered what it was that the other had to do. It seemed important, but Kid had been very cryptic about what it was.

Turning off the water, he took a deep sigh. He really should stop thinking about Kid so much. He stepped out of the shower and got dressed. He chose his favorite sweater, which was yellow with black sleeves and hoodie. It had a drawing on the chest that was made by Corazon. It had been a present the previous year and he loved wearing it.

Law went back to his room and made the bed. As he turned to the mattress to put it away again, a box and a letter caught his eye. He took the letter first and started reading it.

**** _Merry Christmas, Trafalgar.  
I got you a present to thank you for asking me to come along or whatever.  
This way you can practice for later._

Law looked over to the box, which was messily wrapped. Then again, anyone could hardly expect Kid to take the time to neatly wrap a present. Very curious, he opened unwrapped the box and couldn’t help but start laughing as he saw what was in it. The cheeky bastard.

He was holding a box of Operation, the board game. Of course Kid would do something like this. He immediately took his phone and sent the redhead a text.

** _I will be the most prepared surgeon ever!_ **

Law attached a picture of the box of Operation to the text, a smile stuck on his face. A knock on his door drew his attention away from his phone and towards Corazon who was standing in the doorway.

“Who are you texting that is making you smile so widely?” the blond asked, walking over with a small grin on his face.

Corazon already had a pretty good idea about who the person on the other line was. He helped Law clean up the mattress. After that, the pair headed to the kitchen and had some light breakfast.

Law had been hoping to escape without another encounter with Doflamingo, or anyone of the family really However, the world wouldn’t allow him that bit of luck, since said man entered the dining room.

“Fufufu, where is your friend?” the older asked.

Law just shrugged. He technically didn’t know where Kid was currently. He just knew that he wasn’t _here._

“We didn’t scare him away, did we?” Doflamingo asked, putting some fake concern in his voice.

Once again Law shrugged. Truthfully, he found it hard to guess how Kid experienced the night and how much the family had actually bothered him. The redhead didn’t seem like he was easily scared away, but Law didn’t know what was going on in his head.

Corazon tapped Law’s knee, drawing the younger male’s attention. He then nodded towards the door. Law nodded, having gotten the message, and got up from his seat. The two of them went to get their luggage and made sure Bepo was following them to the car.

Law made sure that Bepo was comfortable in the back before taking his own seat. Cora then started the car and started the drive to his own house. He generally felt more at ease now that he managed to get Law away from his brother. He didn’t trust Doffy even a bit, especially not with his adoptive child.

Law stared out the window, lost in thoughts. It seemed to be a new habit of his to zone out lost in the maze of his mind. Corazon, of course picked up on it. He had a pretty good guess as to what was going on in that mind of his.

“I am sure they didn’t manage to scare you away.” he spoke up, feeling comfortable with speaking now it was just Law with him.

Law looked up at his guardian, kind of surprised he knew exactly what he was thinking. Then again, it shouldn’t have been so surprising to him. Cora always knew what he was thinking after all.

“He’s unlike your other friends… I do like him. He seems like a good change of pace for you.” Cora continued.

It was true that Penguin and Shachi were good friends to Law. They had been with the raven-haired male since childhood and knew him well, which had obvious advantages. However, he was someone who needed someone to keep him on his toes. Someone less easy. After all, he easily got bored with easy.

Although Kid had been well behaved throughout the night, possibly as instructed by Law, it was clear there was a temper hidden behind that calm demeanor. Something told Corazon that you’d rather not pick a fight with the redhead.

A short ride later, the pair arrived at Cora’s house and they got out of the car. Bepo was also very happy to be let out of the car, immediately jumping out of the vehicle and running a few energetic laps around it.

Cora got out and opened the door to the house, immediately entering and kicking off his shoes. Law tried his best to calm down Bepo so he could bring the excitable dog inside. After a few pats on his leg and calls of the name, the dog followed inside.

Law found his guardian in the kitchen, making some fresh coffee. Said man motioned for him to sit down at the kitchen table. Law first took a treat for Bepo from the cabinet and then took a seat. He gave the dog his treat. Bepo settled at his feet and munched on the treat.

Corazon finished making the coffee and sat down as he handed the other a cup of coffee. Law happily drank the coffee. Guess he couldn’t leave his addiction behind.

“So… what is with you and Kid? How did you become friends? Are you just friends?”

Corazon dropped a series of questions, which overwhelmed the younger male a bit. He took a second to process the questions and then sighed. He would be lying if he said he hadn’t seen those questions coming. He guessed it was obvious he didn’t look at Kid like he did at Penguin and Shachi.

-

Kid parked on the driveway and stared at the house. Well, glaring would be a much better description. He really didn’t want to be here, but he had no choice. If he didn’t show up here he wouldn’t be able to keep affording his college.

Deciding to just rip of the band-aid, he got out of the car and went over to the front door, quickly ringing the bell. Not surprisingly, nobody came to the door. He rang the bell a few times again, not caring how annoying that would be.

Still, nobody came to the door. With a groan, Kid walked back to his car and opened the glove compartment and took out a key he had tossed in there when he set off to the dorms a few months prior.

He unlocked the door and entered the building. It was oddly quiet in the house. Usually, there was always some form of noise. If it wasn’t music or the tv, it would be the shouting of the inhabitants.

With a sigh, he searched around the house and was surprised to see there was no one in the house. He had informed them he was coming. They should have been able to stay home for one day in the year, right? He realized that was too much to hope for from them.

He rolled with his eyes and went to the kitchen to grab himself a drink. Not surprisingly, the fridge was filled with beer and wine. Since he still needed to drive, he took a glass and filled it with water from the sink. He wasn’t about to follow in those bastard’s footsteps. He settled himself in the living room, turning on the tv to occupy his mind while he waited.

-

Law finished writing down the answers to Corazon’s questions. At least, the ones he knew how to answer. He had to admit he didn’t know how to reply to the last one. After all, he knew how he himself felt, but not so much how Kid felt about the whole situation.

Corazon read the answers, and he admittedly had more questions to ask. However, he didn’t want to waste one of the few days he had with Law on just questioning him, and changed the subject of the conversation.

-

Kid heard a call pull up at the house, meaning the people he had been waiting for had finally arrived. He listened as keys, with great difficulty, found the lock and the door opened. Two figures stumbled into the living room.

The woman of the pair’s eyes widened as they spotted Kid. The man took a bit longer to realize that there was someone else present in the house.

“Oh, Kid… I totally… forgot you were coming. Have you… been waiting long?” the woman asked.

“Only a few hours.” Kid answered bitterly.

The tone of Kid’s voice clearly didn’t please the man as he stepped forward, glaring at the redhead all the while. He raised his hand to slap him, but the younger caught it easily.

“I did not come back here to be your boxing ball again.”

This only angered the older male even more. How dare he speak to him like that? He was to be treated with respect, especially by his _son._

“Listen here you little shit, I will-“

“Stop!” the woman interrupted. “It’s Christmas Day, at least pretend to get along.”

Ladies and Gentleman: Kid’s parents. Two drunks that haven’t spent a day sober since the day Kid had been born. They had elected their son as a way to get rid of their frustrations and anger, which lead the boy to not even want to call them his parents any longer.

It was going to be a long day, Kid already knew that. But he had to sit through this.


	11. New Year's Disaster

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I found time to write after studying.  
Enjoy!

The morning of New Year’s Eve, Kid had woken up early and driven to Killer’s house to help his best friend set up for the party. While they did so, Killer told him all about how his Christmas had been. Kid was content listening to his friend, it was good to have him back.

The pair couldn’t go too long without each other. Some would call that sappy, but they were simply like brothers to each other. After all, the redhead had felt more of a connection to Killer’s family than his own.

The two continued to decorate the house, getting the snacks ready and making sure the music installation was working properly. Of course, Killer had to bring up the inevitable question.

“So, how was Christmas with Law?” the blond asked.

Kid, of course, had been expecting the question. He didn’t really know how to answer it. It had been a strange evening. Then again, it’s not like he could say much without revealing too much about the mute boy, and he felt like it wasn’t his place to say.

“It was… interesting. I guess.”

Killer was more than a little disappointed with the boring answer. It was clear he had hoped on a bit more of a story, something more exciting or special that may have happened.

Then again, Kid had to admit, the Christmas celebration hadn’t been too special. Sure the villa and food were all extravagant, as well as the people present. And sure, Doflamingo was a weirdo and a bit (read: very) creepy. But nothing special had really happened. At least nothing worth mentioning to Killer.

After all the tasks Killer needed help for were finished, Kid went to get changed. He wouldn’t have the time to after picking up Law. He was dressed similarly as he had on Christmas, hair slicked back and everything. It was his go-to ‘fancy’ look. He also put on a leather jacket, just put a little bit more of ‘Kid’ into the outfit.

The only difference was he did something he would only dare to do at parties with Killer present. Wearing make-up. Yes, big brute Eustass Kid could take the time to do something as precise as putting on make-up.

However, that really shouldn’t be such a big surprise, since the little robots he built as a hobby from time to time were also very small and intricate.

The redhead’s make-up routine was rather limited. He applied a bit of eyeliner, giving him a mean look. It made him look more intimidating than he already naturally did. He finished the look with some black lipstick.

Kid always thought he looked rather badass with the make-up, if he said so himself. He couldn’t care less about people thinking make-up was something for girls. Did that mean guys couldn’t care about their looks and want to enhance it with some products? That was utter bullshit in his eyes. If he wanted to wear make-up he sure as hell will.

After he was pleased with how he was looking, he shouted he was leaving and went to his jeep to go and pick up Law. He wondered if the other male had calmed down from Christmas a bit.

-

Kid arrived at Corazon’s house, having gotten the address from Law a bit earlier in the day, and was about to get out of the car to ring the bell. Before he could, Law already came walking out of the house, giving one last wave at his guardian, and walked over to the jeep and getting in.

The redhead kindly nodded at the blond man waving out Law before backing out of the driveway and starting the drive back to Killer’s house.

Kid noticed a huge difference between the Law that had been in his car when they left to the Donquixote mansion and the Law that was sitting next to him now. The raven-haired man looked more at peace and more confident. None of that nervous mess that he was the previous time.

He was glad to see this change. Law seemed visibly happier as well, and the larger male had a suspicion that had something to do with Corazon. The other was clearly very fond of the man. Kid honestly couldn’t imagine what it was like to have a guardian like that. His own parents weren’t anywhere close to what they should be.

Kid shook his head slightly. This was no time to think about this, it was going to ruin his rather good mood. He wasn’t about to let the existence of those two ruin his New Year’s Eve. Especially because Killer’s parties are always pretty fun.

Law was dressed a bit more casual than he was on Christmas. He was wearing a pair of jeans that had spots on them as well as a simple black shirt. The redhead had to admit the other looked rather attractive.

-

The drive to Killer’s house was short and uneventful. However, Law had tried to get on the redhead’s nerves again by playing with the radio again. Luckily, Kid’s patience held out until they arrived at their destination.

The two got out of the car and Kid entered, having a key to the house. After all, his best friend’s family was more of a family to him than his own relatives. He was always welcome here and tended to live here during long breaks.

Law raised his eyebrow when he saw this. He knew the two of them were good friends, but he didn’t know they were _that_ close. The raven-haired male wondered just what the relationship between them was. Killer went to the door, obviously having heard them enter, to greet them.

“You guys are here fast! Welcome, Law.” Killer said kindly as he turned to said male.

Law nodded at the blond kindly. He wondered how he and Kid had met. It seemed like he was very calm compared to the redhead. Most likely the reason that Kid didn’t get into more fights either.

“You need any more help?” Kid asked his friend.

“Could you maybe get some beer from the basement?”

Kid nodded and took the stairs up to the attic, leaving Killer and Law behind, alone. This, of course, was the blonde’s intent. He no longer could contain his curiosity anymore and decided that Law would be the best choice to interrogate.

“So,” Killer spoke. “How was Christmas with Kid? I know he can be quite the handful. He also isn’t the most polite.”

The blond had realized that Law was mute and quickly handed him a pen and paper so he could reply. The raven hadn’t expected such a direct question. He also found it hard to guess what the other really thought of him. Nonetheless, he started writing down his reply.

** _He was polite enough. My family isn’t the easiest to get along with but he kept calm. I was glad he was there._ **

Killer nodded. He had hoped that he would have had something more exciting to tell, but it didn’t seem he would get anything out of Law. At least not what he hoped to hear.

Kid came back with the beer and put it in the kitchen. Just as he did so, the doorbell rang, signaling that the first guests had arrived. Heat and Wire entered the house and greeted everyone, of course kindly greeting Law as well.

It didn’t take long for the rest of the guests to arrive. There were a lot more people invited than Law had expected. He was trying to stick with the people he knew, but that turned out to be more difficult than you would expect. Sure, Kid said something every now and then, but this was more his crowd and had a lot of people starting conversations with him.

Law had stationed himself at the drinks and snacks, where he observed the party. He came to the conclusion Kid and Killer hung around with pretty normal people. Why he was so surprised bu that, he wasn’t sure. Maybe he had expected them to be more, you know, delinquent-y.

The raven-haired man realized that it was a tad judgmental of him. It was, however, reassuring that Kid surrounding himself with the right kind of people.

A man with long, gray hair walked over to the table with drinks and snacks and leaned against the wall next to Law. The latter recognized him as Heat, one of Kid’s closest friends. He wondered why he wasn’t socializing.

He took his phone and typed his question out and tapped Heat on the shoulder, showing him his phone. The gray-haired man was a bit surprised but read it anyway. He then shrugged.

“I am not the biggest fan of parties… lots of people and all that.”

Law nodded understandingly. He himself would be more social though, if he was capable of conversing easier. For now, he was content being able to ‘talk’ to Heat, and the two kept the conversation going.

Kid was talking with some of his friends as he glanced around, looking for Law. He felt a bit guilty for allowing himself to get swept up in the conversations with his friends without making sure he had introduced his newest friend to some people.

His eyes landed on the man in question, seeing he was talking to Heat. He was relieved to see the raven had no problem socializing and meeting new people on his own. Even getting Heat to laugh, that was a feat not many could accomplish.

The party was going on well, everyone was enjoying themselves. Seemed like Killer had set up a great party once again, just like every year. However, as they say, all good things must come to an end. Some other times, the good things just get abruptly interrupted.

This time, interruption came in the form of none other than Mr. Eustass, who came storming into the party, reeking of alcohol while still holding half a bottle of vodka. The man’s entrance had caused so much noise, the entire party’s attention turned to him.

Kid’s eyes widened. He was frozen, he couldn’t believe what he was seeing. What on earth was his father doing here?! How did he even know where to go?! The man turned his son, the alcohol clearly making his apparent anger worse.

“YOU!” he shouted, pointing at his child with the arm that wasn’t holding the vodka.

Everyone glanced at Kid and then turned their attention back to the father. Law was speechless when he saw the man, who so clearly was related to the redhead. He wondered what on earth was going on.

“You ruined my life! You weren’t supposed to exist! YOU WERE A MISTAKE!”

Kid was still frozen. He had heard these words many times before, but they still hurt when they were being spoken. Even by a man he resented so much. What’s even worse, nobody but Killer knew about his home situation, and now it was being exposed to everyone.

Killer was the first to jump to action. He could tell his best friend was too shocked to react. The best thing to do now was to remove Mr. Eustass from the party. Heat and Wire immediately went over to Killer, already guessing what he was planning to do.

The three of them escorted him out of the house, making sure he would leave. The older man tried several times to get in and yell at his ‘mistake’ of a son. However, the persistence of the three blocking the door annoyed him, so he gave up and left.

Kid finally came out of his frozen state when Killer, Heat, and Wire entered the house again. He felt the eyes of most of the guests on him, and he was getting anxious from all the unwanted attention.

The peering eyes is why he decided to remove himself from the crows and went outside to the garden. Naturally, people looked after him as he did so. He couldn’t really blame that, after that display of his father.

The air was ice cold, but it didn’t bother him at all as he was still too shocked. He sat down on one of the garden chairs and stared at the dark, trying to collect his thoughts as well as calm down.

The party inside had resumed, mostly because Killer told everyone to mind their own business. The blond wanted to check up on his friend, but figured the redhead really needed to be alone right now. Besides, he already saw a certain raven-haired man head outside.

Law stepped outside and immediately felt the cold engulf him. He took the chair next to the redhead, doing his best to ignore the cold. Kid looked at him shortly before resuming his staring.

“Sorry you had to see that…” the redhead muttered.

Law sighed and started typing on his phone.

** _Are you okay?_ **

Kid sighed. He didn’t exactly know if he was okay. He was shaken up, that for sure. The situation was anything but ideal, in fact, it sucked entirely. No one was supposed to know about the drunk that is his father.

“Been better.”

It was Law’s turn to sigh. Of course, his friend wasn’t about to say much an open up. That’s not something Kid was likely to do. In any case, he was more likely to just keep it to himself and deal with it all on his own.

** _You can’t keep everything for yourself to deal with._ **

“I know, you don’t need to tell me that. I just… don’t like talking about how shitty my parents are.” Kid said.

** _I don’t mind you telling me about it, let it out._ **

Kid thought about it. Did he trust Law? For sure! But he didn’t want to burden the other with his shitty past. After all, what if Law suddenly decided he didn’t want anything to do with him any longer? He couldn’t have that!

Law saw the uncertainty on Kid’s face. Seriously, what was he worried about, after he even met his ‘family’. There was no need for him to keep it all to himself.

** _Kid, please. Just talk to me, I can tell it’s bothering you. I promise I won’t run._ **

And that was the last bit of motivation Kid needed to finally take the burden off his heart.

-

_Kid was helping his mother in the kitchen, making dinner. The twelve-year-old had claimed he had wanted to learn how to cook, just like his mama._

_Then, in came his father, straight from the pub down the street, and drunk as hell. This was no unusual sight. The man entered the kitchen and his face turned into rage._

_“Dinner isn’t ready yet? What the hell are you good far then?!” he shouted at his wife, not only startling her but also his son._

_Kid’s mother started whimpering at the tone of her husband and kept whispering ‘sorry’ over and over again. The child looked at his mother worriedly, but that only lasted until his father’s attention turned to him._

_“And you?! What the hell do you think you’re doing?! Cooking?! You’re not a girl are you?!” the man spat before raising his hand and slapping the child in the face._

_“No! Stop! Don’t hurt him!” his mother yelled as she pushed her husband away from young Kid._

_Of course, the man wasn’t having that, and raised his hand to his wife now. Kid hid in a corner of the kitchen, covering his ears from hearing his mother’s screams of pain, as well as shielding his eyes, trying to cancel it all out._

_However, nothing ever helped to make it stop. And Kid could never forget. However, he could get used to it._

-

That was only one instance Kid told Law about. However, this was almost the same every day. The least bit pissed off his father and caused him to go violent on him and his mother. Speaking of her, she also turned to alcohol to forget about her husband’s deeds.

Law remained quiet. Well, that wasn’t unusual for him, but he couldn’t even think of a way to react to what his friend had just told him. He felt bad for him. But he knew if he’d say that Kid would just feel even worse. So he decided to type out something else.

** _That must have been hard on you. I must mention, though, that you should be proud of yourself. Despite the shitty situation you had at home, you grew into a great young man. They should be happy with a great son like you, and if they can’t appreciate that, their loss. Your friends can tell that you’re a good person. They can be your family instead._ **

Kid couldn’t help but grow a bit of a smile after reading the message. Sure, he still felt pretty shitty about his father barging into the party, but the words of his friend did make him feel a bit better. And he was right too.

Killer finally dared to come and interrupt the two outside. He was carrying two beers and handed each of them one. After all, it was still New Year’s Eve and this was still a party.

“You guys coming inside? The countdown to midnight is going to start soon.” Killer said.

Kid shook his head. “I am staying outside. Don’t want to miss the fireworks.”

It was a shitty excuse, but it was rather understandable. After all, all attention would be back on him if he went back inside. Killer couldn’t blame him and looked over at Law, waiting for his reply.

The raven shrugged and nodded at Kid, indicating he was going to stay with the redhead. Killer couldn’t help but smile as he went back inside. He knew his best friend was in good hands.

“Sorry this isn’t the greatest way to celebrate New Year’s.” Kid apologized.

** _What are you talking about? Anything better than being alone. I prefer hanging out with you anyway._ **

Law was blushing a bit as he showed the message to Kid. Of course, he felt a bit out of his element when he admitted that, but it wasn’t a lie.

“Well, then I take the apology back… I like hanging out with you too by the way.”

Kid checked his phone. 20 minutes to midnight, the countdown would be starting soon. He took a sip from the beer Killer had brought and glanced over to Law, who was visibly shaking from the cold.

“Maybe we should go inside after all, you’re freezing.”

Law shook his head. He liked it here outside, it was quiet and it was just to the two of them. Kid sighed and took off his leather jacket and handing it to Law, who didn’t even felt the need to protest and accepted it. He really was cold.

Law was still cold though, and had an even better idea to warm himself. He got off his chair and sit down on Kid’s lap. Before the redhead could sputter some protests, the raven shoved his phone in the man’s face with his explanation.

** _Still cold. We could warm each other like this._ **

Kid blushed, he didn’t know how to react to this. It wasn’t like he didn’t like it, but he was afraid he might like it a bit too much. He also had no idea how Law felt about him at all. Yes, Kid was admitting to himself that he liked the other.

Finally admitted to himself the feelings that his friends had already caught on to. However, he didn’t know if the raven felt the same. He assumed he didn’t, even if he was sitting on his lap. It was just because he was cold after all.

The countdown started, hearing the people inside yell the numbers loudly. Law decided to kick off the new year well by trying something bold. He didn’t know how it would turn out, but who doesn’t dare doesn’t win.

As the countdown continued, Law turned a bit on Kid’s lap, facing the man easier. The redhead looked at him with some confusion. The raven’s heart started beating faster, nervous for what he was about to do. But he wasn’t about to turn back now.

He leaned in, and just as the countdown reached 1, his lips touched Kid’s painted ones. The other was, to say the least, surprised. But he didn’t let the surprise get in the way of kissing back. His hands found their way to Law’s head, pulling him in more to deepen the kiss.

The kiss was forced to a halt when the fireworks started, startling the two. A blush was very much present on their faces.

“Well… that was probably the best way to kick off the new year.” Kid said.

Law smiled and nodded. He moved around a little bit on Kid’s lap, and stared at the sky, watching the fireworks. Kid wrapped his arms around the smaller man also looking at the spectacle in the sky.

Neither of them knew what the new year would bring, or what the future would hold. But they did know, that if they had each other, everything would be fine.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was the last chapter!  
I hoped you enjoyed the story!  
I realized I didn't really portray the characters well like I wanted to, but trial and error I guess.  
I definitely plan on writing more KidLaw in the future!
> 
> Edit: I decided I couldn't just end this fic like this, without tying up the loose ends I created, so I am back to writing it!


	12. Doffy's Business

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, here we go... time to tie up the loose ends in the following chapters.  
Hope you'll like what i got planned.

Law woke up around noon on the first of January. He was allowed to stay over at Killer’s house, especially since he didn’t want to force Kid to bring him all the way back to Corazon’s house. The bed had to be shared with Kid though, since there was only guest bedroom (which usually was occupied by the redhead to begin with). Law was far from complaining though.

The raven-haired man sat up straight in the bed and rubbed his eyes, giving himself some time to decently wake up. The bigger man beside him was stirring, indicating he was slowly waking up as well.

The memory of their kiss came to mind again, and Law blushed all over again. He could still barely believe that he had taken the step to do that. There was one thing to be very glad about, though. Kid had kissed back. That meant the other liked him as well, right? Or was it the heat of the moment.

Kid groaned as he sat up straight. He was obviously still very tired and none too happy about the daylight that was coming in from the window. After staring out in front of him for a little while, his brain seemed to wake up and finally turned to look at Law, who hadn’t moved.

“Morning.” Kid grumbled.

Law was slightly amused by the other’s bad morning mood, but nodded in reply and gave him a nod, as a way to greet him back. He then got up and went to the bathroom to fresh up. Of course, he hadn’t been smart enough to anticipate he would be staying over and be in need of a change of clothes.

He left the bedroom to see Kid had laid back down, trying to doze off again. The raven chuckled a little and rolled his eyes. Of course. He shook the redhead until he opened his eyes again, which gained him a growl from said male.

Law, being the little shit that he is, kept shaking until Kid finally knew he wouldn’t give up and would get up. The redhead sat up and glared at the person that so rudely decide him to force him into reality.

“What do you want?” he growled.

Law had to admit, Kid’s morning voice was even deeper than his normal one, and it was pleasant to hear. When he noticed the other was staring at him, expecting a response to his question, he got flustered and fumbled to get his phone so he could type.

** _Do you have some clothes I could borrow? Mine stink from the party yesterday._ **

It was then that Kid realized that Law was walking around shirtless. How had his brain only processed that now? Of course, he quickly shook it off and got out of the bed to get the other the clothes that he requested. He grabbed a shirt and a pair of comfortable pants. Once Law took them, he disappeared back into the bathroom.

Meanwhile, the redhead went downstairs where he was greeted by a very sleepy Killer. Neither of the two were really morning people, which was why rooming with each other was so easy. The blond, without needing to speak a word, handed his friend a cup of coffee, knowing he very much needed it.

After a short period of silence, Killer finally opened his mouth to talk. “So… you and Law got pretty cozy outside huh?”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Kid asked, immediately starting to wonder how much his friend knew.

Killer just shrug, but held a knowing smile. Kid was sure he knew. Was that a problem? Not really. However, he wasn’t excited about the inevitable questions and teasing that would follow. Nothing to do about it anymore.

-

After Killer and Kid got ready, they all got in Kid’s jeep to drive back to the campus. The blond had purposefully let Law sit in front under the guise of ‘preferring to sit in the back anyway’. The redhead saw what his friend was doing, of course.

Before heading to their destination, the drove by Corazon’s to pick up Law’s luggage, which luckily didn’t take too long, since they had a long drive ahead of them.

To everyone’s relief, the ride wasn’t too awkward. It was mostly Kid and Killer talking. However, sometimes Law joined in on the conversation, letting Killer read out his responses and questions. It was overall rather pleasant.

They decided not to stop to take a break so they wouldn’t arrive too late. After all, they would need some time to get settled back into their dorm rooms.

Once they arrived, they took their luggage and it was time to part ways with Law. Kid muttered an awkward goodbye and hurried over to his own dorm, startling Law a bit. The raven started to wonder what had gotten into him all of a sudden.

When Law entered his own dorm, he noticed Luffy hadn’t arrived back yet, which wasn’t too surprising. His roommate usually only arrived a day before classes started because he enjoyed spending time with his brothers.

He didn’t mind the little bit of silence he had left. It would give him some time to process the holidays. It would give him the time to get the dorm in order as well. If he would have to do that with Luffy here, he would either not get anything done or the other would just ruin everything he had just cleaned.

His first order of business now was to get himself some food. As he checked the cupboards, he noticed that everything was pretty much gone. Nothing unusual there, living with the glutton that is his roommate. Luckily, there was a supermarket not too far from the dorms.

He didn’t feel like doing much cooking so he decided to settle on a simple microwavable meal. Law had to admit though, eating it alone after having spent time with Corazon and Kid felt somewhat… lonely. He shook it off, he should be happy with the peace.

-

Kid and Killer just dumped their suitcases on the floor. Neither of them were excited about putting anything in order. To be honest, they were still tired from the previous night, so they decided to be lazy.

Killer went to the kitchen and grabbed two cups of instant ramen and heated up some water to prepare it. It wasn’t like either of the two was going to volunteer to cook anyway. When the ramen were ready, the blond gave one to his friend and then settled on his bed.

The pair decided to put up a mindless movie to watch while they were eating. It was some stupid action movie they had laying around at their dorm room, but they enjoyed it from time to time.

It was a lazy evening for everyone present at the dorms that day.

-

The following day, Law didn’t waste any time getting his room in order. Normally, it would be something he would have a hard time getting started on, but the day was just sort of uneventful and boring already.

Who knew he, Trafalgar Law, could get used to getting people around to the point of feeling bored and lonely when there weren’t? He had always had enjoyed his time alone and preferred to do everything by himself.

He wondered Kid and Killer were up to… It must be nice to be _that_ close to someone that you could consider them family. Sure, he got along well with Luffy, Shachi and Penguin, but he wouldn’t go as far as to call them ‘brother’ or anything.

Law’s concentration was broken when his phone buzzed, signaling he got a message. To no one’s surprise, it was Kid. It made the raven-haired smile without even realizing it.

** _You’re not planning to lock yourself in your room for the rest of the break are you?_ **

He chuckled a little. It was only the first day of self-imprisonment, how did the redhead already know his plans for the break? Admittedly, he felt a bit caught. Maybe his bad habit of locking himself in was obvious to guess? Either way, he had to reply.

** _Why not? There are no annoying redheads here._ **

He grinned at his response, put the phone in his back pocket and continued unpacking his suitcase, which was what he had been doing before he was interrupted. However, before he could really get anything done, another text from Kid arrived.

** _You better be in the coffee shop in like, 30 minutes, for your daily dose of annoying redhead._ **

Seemed like he didn’t have much of a choice. It was clear there was no room for discussion in the matter. As if Law really minded. He was actually looking forward to it already. Before he got ready to leave, he shot the other one last text.

** _You can simply say you miss me already._ **

-

Law rubbed his hands together to warm them up as he entered the coffee shop. It was getting a familiar meet up spot with Kid. The man in question was seated at one of the tables, clearly already having Law’s brew ready as well.

Law took the seat in front of his friend, who finally glanced up from his phone. “Took you long enough.”

Didn’t take long for both of them to get into their comfortable habit of drinking coffee and talking. Well, Kid was the one talking, Law was still just stuck with typing away on his phone to reply.

-

Meanwhile, at the Donquixote Mansion, Doflamingo was having a very important meeting with big figures from the underground. Currently, he was discussing business with Kaido, leader of the Beast Gang, and Stussy, a representative of the secret CP0 organization.

“A weaponized disease, huh? Are you sure it can be done?” Kaido asked.

Doflamingo grinned widely. He had been waiting for that question to come. It was also great to see that there was some interest in what he was offering. Even though Stussy didn’t say anything yet, you could tell from looking at her face that she was interested as well.

“I have a scientist working on it right now. And not just any… none other than Ceasar Clown is working on it. All we need is someone who formerly had the disease.” he explained.

Stussy’s face expressed worry now. “There are no survivors known…”

Doflamingo’s grin widened even more, if that was even possible.

“Don’t worry… I know someone. He was the only person to ever be cured of the Amber Lead Disease.”


End file.
